Perth Scorchers will be able to place top orders for the Women's Big Bash when they learn of the signing of former captain Sophie Devine.
Devine joins Australia’s Better Mooney as a major achievement for the Scorchers as they look set to rebuild their cleanup following the return of Meg Lanning back to the Melbourne Stars.
Devine has been one of the best form players in the world for the past 18 months and is a champion of the tournament at WBBL last season where he hit 789 runs and took 19 wickets for the Adelaide Strikers.
He led New Zealand to the T20 World Cup earlier this year and has been named their permanent captain. In building the World Cup he became the first player to make five consecutive 50+ points in the T20Is, running up to six.
Devine has a strong connection with Western Australia in being part of the WNCL set-up, time has shown him to be a very good player.
Devine is not the only New Zealander to have entered their WBBL season with the Brisbane Heat re-signing duo Amelia Kerr and Maddy Green as they hunt for the league title.
Both players played a key role in the Heat title race last season. Green hit 309 runs in 15 innings, including 46 off 29 balls in the semi-finals against the Melbourne Renegades, while Kerr took 14 wickets in 25.50 and the economic level of -6.22 with his leg pin.
"Maddy played the role we gave him and showed his class and calmness throughout the team, and also gave the other team our team leadership. Amelia was very much a young player and a successful WBBL player," said coach Ashley Noffke. In the process, Devine, who won the tournament last year, will end his five-year title with the Adelaide Stars. "It is been a really great honour to join the Scorchers and lead the side this season, it is a new challenge for me and the team as we build the WBBL tournament," he said.
Devine comes on the sidelines with a WBBL record of 2174 runs with a strike rate of 129. She had a steady run and became the first player to score five consecutive 50 points in the T20Is when she beat six of them at the ICC Women’s World Cup earlier this year. "Sophie has proven herself to be one of the best T20 players in the world, we are lucky to have her join the Perth Scorchers," said coach Shelley Nitschke.
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