Georgia Voll and Anika Learoyd took centre stage as the Thunder opened their account with relative ease
Match Report:
ScorecardThunder kick off WBBL|12 with comfortable win over 'Gades
Anika Learoyd has carved out a career-best innings as the Sydney Thunder started their WBBL campaign with a convincing six-wicket win over the Melbourne Renegades in the season opener.
Learoyd made 48 from 37 balls after off-spinner Georgia Voll (4-26) did most damage with the ball in the first match of a double-header at Junction Oval on Thursday.
In at first drop, after Voll made 25 off 18, including the Thunder's only six of the match, Learoyd hit nine boundaries and put on 62 with Heather Knight in a match-winning third-wicket partnership.
The pair took 28 runs from the power surge to put the Thunder within sight of victory. Knight (29 not out off 22 balls) and Nadine de Klerk (12no from six) finished the job, guiding their team to 4-140 with 18 balls to spare.
Learoyd admitted feeling "really nervous" batting near the top of the order, but will take confidence from starting the season with a strong performance.
"Probably a little bit of belief, I think," Learoyd told Fox Cricket.
"It's not always something I'm great at, so it's really nice to feel like I can put the scores on the board and hopefully that will help me believe I'm good enough to do it."
Anika Learoyd is playing some sort of knock! Four boundaries off one Deandra Dottin over and she's got her highest score in the Big Bash. #WBBL12 https://t.co/qPTTJqUZH2
— Weber Women's Big Bash League (@WBBL) October 29, 2026
Tayla Vlaeminck, playing in her first game after five injury-cruelled seasons, finally took her first wicket to finish with figures of 2-23, but the Thunder were far too strong to take home the win.
Earlier, Voll's four wickets and hand in a run-out were crucial in restricting the Renegades to 9-138 from their 20 overs.
"She was great, wasn't she? The true allrounder," Learoyd said.
"She's been someone who I think is a really good contributor to our group with both bat and ball, and in the field as well.
"It was really nice to see her kick off a really good campaign."
Renegades opener Hayley Matthews gave her side a strong start with the bat, blasting 45 from 30 balls before holing out in the deep.
Matthews put on 56 for the first wicket with Courtney Webb (22 from 24), and Georgia Wareham made a handy 23 from 19, but a late-innings collapse cruelled their chances.
The Renegades lost 5-2 in the space of seven balls through the 17th and 18th overs as Voll wreaked havoc.
Weber WBBL|12 Standings
Round 1
| Team | M | W | L | T | D | N/R | NRR | Ded. | Bat | Bowl | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1
SCO
|
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3.422 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
|
2
THU
|
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.335 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
|
3
STR
|
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.05 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
|
4
SIX
|
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
|
5
STA
|
2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -0.075 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
|
6
HEA
|
1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -0.15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
|
7
HUR
|
1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -0.9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
|
8
REN
|
2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -2.265 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
M: Matches played
W: Wins
L: Losses
T: Ties
D: Drawn
N/R: No results
NRR: Net Run Rate
Ded.: Deductions
Bat: Batting Bonus
Bowl: Bowling Bonus
PTS: Total points