Photo Credit: Sydney Thunder
Local teen commits to the Thunder Nation
Sydney Thunder has re-signed promising bowler Kate Peterson to a two-year deal ahead of the upcoming Rebel Women’s Big Bash League season.
The 17-year-old, who grew up in North Rocks in the Hills District, signed her first WBBL contract with Thunder in September 2019 and became the second graduate of the Thunder WBBL Academy after Hannah Darlington, who was named the Rebel Young Gun of WBBL|05.
A swing bowler, who quite often opens the attack for the teams she plays in, Peterson has produced strong performances at underage level and in NSW Women’s Premier Cricket earning her a new two-year contract.
Like Thunder teens Phoebe Litchfield and Darlington, Peterson is a product of the strong Cricket NSW pathway.
Representing NSW Metropolitan at the 2019/20 Female Under 18 National Championships, Peterson claimed 13 wickets at the impressive average of 13.4.
Peterson said she’s looking forward to continuing to develop her game with the goal of making her WBBL debut this season.
“I loved my first season with Thunder and I’m really excited for the next two seasons ahead,” Peterson said.
“Playing with the likes of Rene Farrell and obviously with Rachael Haynes as captain, I just feel like I learnt so much and really developed as a player.
“It’d be a dream come true to break into the team and get a chance to debut this season.”
Thunder Head Coach Trevor Griffin believes Peterson will form an important part of the future of the club.
“Kate’s desire and commitment to improve really stood out and I know she’s worked incredibly hard on her game over the winter,” Griffin said.
“For somebody so young, she can execute a yorker well and she’s a real competitor in the field. She’s a really exciting prospect for the future.
“We’ve got a few changes in personnel this year and that’s going to give a number of players a chance to stake their claim and I have no doubt that Kate will be pushing to make her debut for Thunder.”
This week Peterson will be dropping into Far West NSW via video alongside teammate Tahlia Wilson, visiting schools and cricket clubs as part of the club’s ongoing commitment to regional engagement.
Across two days, Thunder players will reach nine regional communities across Western and Southern New South Wales and the ACT.
Despite not being able to be on site due to COVID-19 restrictions, Peterson is still keen to inspire the community to love and play cricket.
“The support we get in regional areas of NSW is so important to the Thunder Nation,” Peterson said.
“It’s great that we can connect with these communities virtually and hopefully inspire more girls and boys to play cricket this summer.”
This announcement follows the signing of Sammy-Jo Johnson, Lauren Smith and Anika Learoyd, as well as the re-signing of South African speedster Shabnim Ismail.
Cricket Australia has confirmed the full 59-game season of the rebel WBBL|06 will be hosted in Sydney, beginning on Sunday 25 October.
Cricket Australia is working in partnership with the NSW Government to ensure the competition proceeds in line with government regulations and COVID safety guidelines, with the safety of the NSW community and all participations the highest priority.
Details regarding the fixture, venues, broadcast times will be released in due course.
Sydney Thunder WBBL Squad
Head Coach: Trevor Griffin
Contracted for WBBL|06: Rachael Haynes (C), Sam Bates, Hannah Darlington, Saskia Horley, Shabnim Ismail, Sammy-Jo Johnson, Anika Learoyd, Phoebe Litchfield, Kate Peterson, Lauren Smith, Rachel Trenaman, Tahlia Wilson
