Scorchers land England stars, finalise list

Perth Scorchers have signed England wicketkeeper Amy Jones and leg-spinner Sarah Glenn, completing their squad for the upcoming Rebel WBBL season.

One of the busiest clubs on the recruitment front this off-season under new coach Shelley Nitschke, the Scorchers have made five changes to the group that made the semi-finals last summer, including bidding farewell to Australia captain Meg Lanning.

After poaching last season's two highest run scorers, Beth Mooney and Sophie Devine from the Heat and Strikers respectively, the re-signing of Jones and addition of Glenn complete an enviable roster of marquee players.

Jones returns to Perth for a third season and will again be eager to impress after finishing WBBL|05 inside the top 10 run-scorers with 391 runs over 13 matches.

Glenn will arrive in Australia fresh off her player-of-the-series display against the West Indies in England's 5-0 T20I whitewash in Derby.

Across the five matches, the 21-year-old took seven wickets at 12 with an economy rate of 5.6 - a performance that saw her break into the ICC's top 10 ranked T20I bowlers on Thursday - and she displayed her all-round credentials with a score of 26 from 19 in the second game.

This will be her second trip to Australia following the T20 World Cup earlier this year, where she collected 3-15 against Pakistan at Manuka Oval.

Her addition to the bowling ranks balances out a squad that is heavy on elite batting talent, with Mooney, Devine and Jones backed up by former Australian opener Nicole Bolton and allrounder Heather Graham.

"We're delighted to have Amy Jones back for another year, she will again play an important top-order batting role for us," Nitschke said.

"Amy’s a proven international talent, she’s a clean ball-striker who brings experience and a no-fuss approach.

"Sarah is an exciting leg-spinner who will offer great variety to our bowling attack.

"She’s played well in Australia before with England and that will give her great confidence heading into her first WBBL campaign."

Perth's announcement solves two thirds of a puzzle posed by England captain Heather Knight at the end of her team's series against West Indies.

Speaking at the trophy presentation, Knight revealed she was one of six English players due to fly to Australia this Saturday to begin their two weeks of hotel quarantine for WBBL|06, alongside Glenn, Jones, Natalie Sciver, Katherine Brunt and Tammy Beaumont.

Sciver and Brunt have signed with the Stars while it has yet to be confirmed who Knight and Beaumont will line up for. However, only the Sydney Thunder (two spots) and Adelaide Strikers (one) have room left on their lists for overseas players.

Knight played for the Hobart Hurricanes, and Beaumont for the Melbourne Renegades, in WBBL|05. 

The full 59-match schedule for WBBL|06, beginning October 25, was revealed last week.

The competition is being held in a Sydney hub with matches played across five venues, while all eight teams will be housed in a 'WBBL Village' at Sydney Olympic Park.

Perth Scorchers WBBL|06 squad: Sophie Devine (c) (NZ), Jemma Barsby, Sam Betts, Megan Banting, Nicole Bolton, Mathilda Carmichael, Piepa Cleary, Sarah Glenn (Eng), Heather Graham, Amy Jones (Eng), Emma King, Beth Mooney (Aus), Taneale Peschel, Chloe Piparo, Georgia Wyllie