The Sydney Sixers are batting first in the Rebel WBBL final against the Brisbane Heat after captain Ellyse Perry won the toss at Drummoyne Oval.
Both teams have named unchanged XIs after claiming thrilling semi-final victories at the same venue last weekend.
The Sixers are aiming to take out a remarkable third consecutive title, while the Heat are playing in their first WBBL decider.
Sydney Sixers XI: Alyssa Healy (wk), Ellyse Perry (c), Ashleigh Gardner, Erin Burns, Sara McGlashan, Dane van Niekerk, Marizanne Kapp, Lauren Smith, Sarah Aley, Hayley Silver-Holmes, Lauren Cheatle
Brisbane Heat XI: Beth Mooney (wk), Grace Harris, Sammy-Jo Johnson, Kirby Short (c), Jess Jonassen, Josie Dooley, Laura Harris, Delissa Kimmince, Laura Wolvaardt, Jemma Barsby, Haidee Birkett
When, where and how to watch
The first standalone Rebel WBBL final will be played at Sydney’s Drummoyne Oval, with the Sixers taking on the Heat from 10:10am AEDT.
The match will be broadcast live on Channel Seven and Fox Cricket, while there will also be radio coverage on the ABC.
Fans following online will be able to stream the match via Kayo, while scores, radio coverage and video replays will also be available on cricket.com.au and the Cricket Australia Live app.
Attending the game
It’s officially a sell-out for the season finale!
The action kicks off at 10.10am AEDT, with gates at Drummoyne Oval to open at 9.30am.
Warm weather is predicted for Sydney on Saturday, but in good news Sydney Water will be on site to provide free water to those in attendance, while Nickelodeon will be on hand to help cool fans down with water pistols.
Food trucks will ensure no one goes hungry, while there’ll also be a slide, face painting, giveaways from Woolworths, innings-break trivia, picnic rugs and beanbags.
Australian flags and tattoos will be handed out and fans will have a chance to walk out into the middle of Drummoyne Oval following the game.
Fans are welcome to bring their own food and non-alcoholic beverages in plastic containers.
The squads
Sydney Sixers: Ellyse Perry (c), Erin Burns, Lauren Cheatle, Ashleigh Gardner, Alyssa Healy (wk), Jodie Hicks, Marizanne Kapp, Carly Leeson, Sara McGlashan, Hayley Silver-Holmes, Lauren Smith, Dane Van Niekerk
Brisbane Heat: Kirby Short (c), Jemma Barsby, Haidee Birkett, Josie Dooley, Grace Harris, Laura Harris, Sammy-Jo Johnson, Jess Jonassen, Delissa Kimmince, Sune Luus, Beth Mooney (wk), Georgia Prestwidge, Laura Wolvaardt
Key players
Ellyse Perry (Sixers)
Perry has been peerless with the bat this tournament and has scored an incredible 744 runs in 15 innings. She’s scored two tons and six half-centuries in that time, at an average of 93. Enough said.
Ashleigh Gardner (Sixers)
The explosive Sixers No.3 probably hasn’t had the season she would have liked, averaging 24.15 with just one half-century. But the Australian allrounder is a big-game player and if there’s a time she’s going to rise to the challenge, it could well be at Drummoyne Oval on Saturday.
Marizanne Kapp (Sixers)
The fiery South African quick is a force with the new ball and her contest against the powerful Heat top-order is probably the most intriguing match-up of this final. She’s snared 19 wickets at 17.57 this tournament while keeping a tidy economy rate of 5.85.
Beth Mooney (Heat)
Mooney came into the finals in red-hot form after scoring a century in the final regular season match against Sydney Thunder. After missing out in last weekend’s semi-final, the Australian T20 opener will be determined to go big in the final.
Grace Harris (Heat)
No one is scoring at a faster rate than Harris this season, so beware if she gets her eye in at Drummoyne Oval. She has one century this season and even when she hasn’t gone big, she has gone hard and has made a habit of giving the Heat fast starts in the powerplay.
Sammy-Jo Johnson (Heat)
Johnson’s had a breakthrough season with both bat and ball and was the star when the Heat defeated the Sixers in December, scoring 51 and collecting three wickets. So far this season she’s picked up 19 wickets at 17.73 to go with her 256 runs at the impressive strike rate of 140.65 batting at No.3.
Head-to-head this season
The teams first met on December 22 at the SCG, when Perry struck an unbeaten century to fire the Sixers to an 11-run win.
It was Perry’s second century in six matches, with her 64-ball 103no taking the Sixers to 3-166, before the Heat were limited to 7-155, with Jess Jonassen top-scoring with 33.
But the Heat had their revenge just 24 hours later when they met in the return match at Hurstville Oval.
On that occasion, it was a career-best performance from Sammy-Jo Johnson with both bat and ball that helped the Heat thump the Sixers by 66 runs.
Johnson scored 51 off 30 in the Heat’s 7-154, before snaring 3-23 with the ball as the Sixers were skittled for just 88.
The road to finals (most recent last)
Sydney Sixers: WWLWW
Brisbane Heat: WWWLW
WBBL titles
Sixers 2, Heat 0
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