Signed and sealed: Lanning comes home for WBBL

It is official: Australia captain Meg Lanning will return to the Melbourne Stars for the upcoming Rebel WBBL season.

One of the worst-kept secrets of the off-season was confirmed on Wednesday, with Lanning's homecoming the first WBBL|06 signing announcement after the contract embargo was lifted last Friday.

The 28-year-old Victorian returns to the team she captained in WBBL|01 and WBBL|02 before sensationally jumping ship to the Scorchers, where, after missing the third edition of the tournament due to shoulder surgery, she led Perth through the past two summers.

Reclaiming the services of the superstar batter is a huge boost for the Stars, who finished bottom of the table last summer with just two wins from 14 matches and who hold the dubious distinction of being the only WBBL team to have never reached the tournament playoffs.

Lanning cited a reunion with familiar faces and the chance to work with new head coach Trent Woodhill as the prime motivators behind her move.

Image Id: B3EE8BECFA374098BBC7A4C3EB390C3E Image Caption: Meg Lanning top-scored for the Stars in WBBL|01 // Getty

"Trent Woodhill's got a lot of experience in T20 cricket," Lanning said. "(He's) worked with so many great players and different franchises in different tournaments.

"I'm certainly looking forward to working with him and seeing what his philosophy is on T20 cricket especially."

The three-time T20 World Cup winning skipper will not have to wait long to meet the Scorchers, with the Stars scheduled to take on the Perth team in Western Australia on October 18 – the second day of WBBL|06. 

In her four Big Bash seasons to date, Lanning has scored 1983 runs at 47.15, to sit sixth on the all-time run-scorers list. 

Impressively, she has achieved those numbers playing one season fewer than each of the five batters above her – reflected in the fact that only No.1 run-scorer Ellyse Perry boasts a higher average. 

The right-handed run machine was the competition's leading run scorer in both of her two previous seasons in green, striking 560 in the inaugural tournament and 502 in her second. 

In WBBL|05, she struck 531 including her maiden Big Bash century as the Scorchers reached the semi-finals before being knocked out by the Adelaide Strikers. 

"Having Meg back at the Stars is huge, it's almost like starting again," Woodhill said.

"It's the chance for the Stars to reset. We won't be putting too much pressure on Meg to be the star of the show, but we know Meg is a star of world cricket.

"We want to be able to provide her with the environment where she can thrive, and bring out the best in her by having as much fun as possible through success and establishing a winning culture."

Lanning is the sixth confirmed name on the Stars' books for WBBL|06, joining Elyse Villani, Annabel Sutherland, Nicole Faltum, Alana King and Holly Ferling who were all on multi-year deals. 

The right-hander is particularly looking forward to reuniting with former Australia and Scorchers teammate Villani, while also working alongside the likes of budding allrounder Sutherland who made her international debut earlier this year.

"We've got an exciting group with a lot of improvement in it and I can't wait to start working with those players and the coaching staff as well," Lanning said.

"Elyse Villani is someone who I've always really enjoyed playing with (and) we've also got two very bright talents in Annabel Sutherland and Nic Faltum who have been around for a few years now, so I'm really excited to be able to play alongside them and hopefully help them develop further."

The Stars currently have no overseas players contracted for this season, having last year fielded South African pair Lizelle Lee and Mignon du Preez alongside New Zealand's Katey Martin. 

Getting imports into the going is just one of many challenges facing the WBBL amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, but CA's Head of the Big Bash Leagues, Alastair Dobson last week confirmed the league and clubs were committed to finding a way to bring the world's biggest stars to Australia.

Melbourne Stars BBL|06 squad so far: Nicole Faltum, Holly Ferling, Alana King, Meg Lanning, Annabel Sutherland, Elyse Villani.

ALL-TIME WBBL RUN SCORERS 

Ellyse Perry (Sixers) – 2612 runs at 53.30, 70 inns

Beth Mooney (Heat) – 2576 at 45.19, 75 inns 

Sophie Devine (Strikers) – 2174 at 39.52, 66 inns 

Elyse Villani (Scorchers, Stars) – 2050 at 32.03. 72 inns 

Alyssa Healy (Sixers) – 2013 at 28.75, 74 inns 

Meg Lanning (Stars, Scorchers) – 1982 at 47.15, 51 inns