'Proud' Litchfield keen to harness Thunder momentum

There was no sleep in or cruisy brunch for Phoebe Litchfield the morning before the Sydney Thunder's Weber WBBL|10 Knockout final.

Instead, the Thunder skipper was at the Sydney Cricket Ground, having roped in batting coach Michael Klinger for an extra solo net ahead of the elimination match that evening.

It is not unusual for the 21-year-old to have a hit ahead of a night game, but in this case, Litchfield was particularly dissatisfied with the session she'd had at Drummoyne Oval in the lead-up to the game.

"I wanted to just hit some balls with no one else there … I roped in 'Maxi' Klinger to just to blow the cobwebs out and just have some fun," Litchfield said shortly after she guided the Thunder to victory with 46 from 36 deliveries.

"And then I went home for a nap and here we are."

Litchfield has thrived as Thunder skipper in her first season in charge and was this week named in the official Team of the Tournament. The maturity she displayed in Thursday's innings cannot be overstated.

Needing 127 in difficult batting conditions, at a venue where the Thunder had been bowled out for 121 and 97 during the regular season, a win was no done deal.

After they lost two wickets in first six overs – in-form opener Georgia Voll and a promoted Tahlia Wilson – Litchfield joined Chamari Athapaththu in the middle.

In the face of some miserly bowling from the Hurricanes, led by Molly Strano's 1-8 from four overs, Litchfield remained calm and outside of a missed stumping opportunity when she was on 23, played a chanceless hand before being dismissed with only two runs required from eight seven deliveries.

"I think once I get a life like that, I was already thinking (I had to) win the game, but it kind of reiterates that and it just makes me clear and reset," Litchfield said.

"Take the leadership off me and I'm still a leader with the bat in this line-up, and having my international experience now makes me a player who has to finish off games like that and I really pride myself on that.

"But it was extra special to be able to be a skipper and win the game.

"I've really loved this extra sense of purpose (as captain) – I've been a batter and a fielder for quite a while now, and especially in this side, it's probably my sixth year.

"Having another purpose, another role, it gets me out of my batter mind, which is kind of a dark place sometimes.

"I've loved it, and to have the people around me supporting me, it's made my job so fun and easy, and this group is so fun to lead."

The Thunder had a chance to claim top spot and the home Final going into the last weekend of the regular season, but a loss to the Renegades saw them finish in third spot.

It means they will have to take the hard road to the decider, and now need to travel to Brisbane and beat the Heat on Friday night to advance.

However, Litchfield said they were looking at it as a chance to build momentum, something they had lost when England captain Heather Knight left on international duties seven games into the regular season, and the Thunder won only one of their final three matches.

"To be so close to a home final, it did kind of sting," Litchfield said.

"But it's nice to keep playing cricket, I think the momentum is an awesome thing and especially in cricket, momentum is massive.

"Hopefully we can just take it into each game and oh man, I love playing cricket for this team.

"So if I can play three more (games), then who cares?

"If you're looking at the results, Heather was a big hole to fill.

"She's an awesome player, and our team knew that we wanted her for seven games regardless rather than none.

"We've probably taken our time to repair that hole, but I think others are stepping up, the likes of Georgia Voll and Athapaththu to find some form, I'm so glad that she was out there to face some balls (last night)."

The Heat will be favoured at their home ground of Allan Border Field on Friday, but the Thunder did get the better of their rivals when they played on neutral territory at the WACA Ground during their sole meeting of the regular season.

"(They'll bring) some heat, it's in the name," Litchfield said.

"They come hard, but we did beat them in the round games, so we'll take a lot of confidence out of that."

WBBL|10 Finals

The Knockout: Sydney Thunder beat Hobart Hurricanes by six wickets with six balls remaining

The Challenger: Brisbane Heat v TBC | Allan Border Field | Friday, November 29 at 7.15pm AEDT, 6.15pm AEDT

The Final: Melbourne Renegades v TBC | MCG | Sunday, December 1 at 1.20pm AEDT

Grab your tickets or tune in on the Seven Network, 7Plus, Fox Cricket, Kayo or ABC and SEN radio