Fans will get a chance to have their say as the Weber WBBL crowns its Team of the Decade
WBBL Team of the Decade shortlist, selectors revealed
The greatest players from across the 10-year history of the Weber WBBL will be honoured this season, with the Big Bash to name an official Team of the Decade.
The team will bring together the standout performers from the league's first decade to recognise the on-field feats that have proven the most entertaining and influential.
The Big Bash have appointed a selection panel of experts to tackle the difficult task of narrowing down a who's who of the world's best players – past and present – into just 12 positions.
Chaired by Cricket Australia Director Clea Smith, the panel includes Mel Jones, Lisa Sthalekar, Matthew Mott, Quentin Hull, Laura Jolly and Alistair Dobson.
Fans will also have the chance to select their Team of the Decade, with public votes to be given equal weighting to panel selections.
A 50-player shortlist, released today, has been chosen by the panel for public voting. Each shortlisted player has played a minimum of 60 WBBL matches prior to this season.
Public voting will be open between November 11-24 on the Big Bash App.
The panel will then review and combine public votes with their own selections to finalise the 12-player side, which will be announced at the Weber WBBL|10 Final on Sunday, December 1.
The XI will be a balanced mix that could theoretically take the field for a game, with a maximum of three overseas players in keeping with league contracting rules.
Picking the openers – and even the top four – promises to be one of the most difficult tasks, given the dominance of Australian stars Beth Mooney, Alyssa Healy, Meg Lanning, Ellyse Perry, Ashleigh Gardner, Grace Harris, Tahlia McGrath and Elyse Villani across the last decade, alongside the contributions of overseas stars including Sophie Devine, Suzie Bates, Mignon du Preez and Lizelle Lee.
Uncapped openers Katie Mack and Georgia Redmayne could also come into consideration.
Who occupies the spin slots will be another tough call – there's allrounder Jess Jonassen, who is the WBBL's all-time leading wicket-taker while also sitting inside the top 20 run scorers, while Amanda-Jade Wellington and Molly Strano are the other two bowlers in the 150-wickets club and have both produced some of the league's most iconic performances.
The cream of the pace talent includes Australian great Megan Schutt, alongside South Africa's Marizanne Kapp and internationally capped allrounders Heather Graham and Nicola Carey.
Who takes the wicketkeeping gloves will be another massive call. Mooney, Healy and Redmayne are all neck-and-neck at the top of the dismissals table, while former Adelaide Strikers 'keeper Tegan McPharlin finished her career with a prolific 91 dismissals to her name.
Sheer weight of runs or wickets may not be the only consideration for the selection panel or fans, who could also take into account factors including batting strike rate, bowling economy rate and – perhaps most importantly – how frequently players have produced match-winning performances on the biggest stage, particularly in finals.
WBBL Team of the Decade shortlist
Weber WBBL|10 standings
| Team | M | W | L | T | N/R | NRR | Ded. | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1
REN
|
10 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0.527 | 0 | 14 |
|
2
HEA
|
10 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0.384 | 0 | 14 |
|
3
THU
|
10 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 1 | -0.002 | 0 | 13 |
|
4
HUR
|
10 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0.189 | 0 | 10 |
|
5
SCO
|
10 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 0 | -0.171 | 0 | 9 |
|
6
SIX
|
10 | 3 | 5 | 1 | 1 | -0.477 | 0 | 8 |
|
7
STR
|
10 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 1 | -0.357 | 0 | 7 |
|
8
STA
|
10 | 2 | 7 | 0 | 1 | -0.205 | 0 | 5 |
M: Matches played
W: Wins
L: Losses
T: Ties
N/R: No results
NRR: Net Run Rate
Ded.: Deductions
PTS: Total points