Phoebe Litchfield, the rising star of Australian cricket, has been appointed as the captain of Sydney Thunder for the upcoming Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL) season. At just 21 years old, Litchfield becomes the youngest full-time captain in WBBL history.
Litchfield’s appointment comes after the departure of England captain Heather Knight, who led Thunder last season but will miss the latter stages of this year’s competition due to injury. Litchfield has been a key player for Thunder since making her debut at the age of 16, scoring over 1200 runs in 67 matches.
In the past season, Litchfield has shown significant improvement in her batting, increasing her strike rate and scoring 309 runs at an impressive 130.37. Her maturity and leadership qualities have also been evident, making her a natural choice for the captaincy role.
Thunder general manager Trent Copeland praised Litchfield’s appointment, saying, “She’s young, but her experience in the game makes this a natural progression. Phoebe has always been mature beyond her years, and her leadership qualities have been evident from the moment she joined Thunder.”
Litchfield will have the support of an experienced squad, including Chamari Athapaththu, Hannah Darlington, Shabnim Ismail, and Sammy-Jo Johnson, as well as coach Lisa Keightley. Thunder will begin their WBBL campaign against Hobart Hurricanes on October 28.
