One of eight founding WBBL teams, the Melbourne Renegades are aligned with themen's team of the same name.[2] On 3 June 2015,Cricket Victoria announcedLachlan Stevens would "take charge of one of Melbourne's two WBBL teams".[3] Stevens would be confirmed as inaugural head coach of the Renegades in the following months.[4][5] At the official WBBL launch on 10 July,Sarah Elliott was unveiled as the team's first ever signing.[6] Elliott would also become the inauguralcaptain.[7]
The Renegades andSydney Sixers have combined to produce some of the most "thrilling"[10] and "controversial"[11] matches in the league's history, particularly revolving around close finishes,[12] including:
3 January 2018,GMHBA Stadium: In "bizarre"[13] scenes, Sixers batterSarah Aley attempted to score a game-tying run on the last delivery despite Renegades wicket-keeperEmma Inglis, having received the ball over the stumps from fielderKris Britt and thus believing the match to be over, already celebrating victory. After deliberation, officiating umpires deemed the ball was notdead and the run would be allowed, thereby forcing asuper over which the Renegades nevertheless went on to win.[14][15]
19 January 2019,Drummoyne Oval: In the Renegades' first finals appearance, with three runs required off the last ball for an upset victory,Sophie Molineux wasshort of her ground attempting the winning run due to a "miracle"[16] piece of team fielding by Sixers playersErin Burns, Sarah Aley andAlyssa Healy. In the resulting super over, Sixers captainEllyse Perry hit asix offMolly Strano to eliminate the Renegades from the tournament. The match, in conjunction with the other semi-final played earlier in the day, was hailed as a showcase of "the irrefutable rise of women's cricket"[17] and "sport with drama, skill and unpredictability – a potent recipe for success".[18]
17 November 2019, Drummoyne Oval: The Renegades, requiring 28 runs off the last 12 balls with only three wickets in hand, pulled off a "great escape"[19] victory against the Sixers through a last-ball six fromCourtney Webb against the bowling ofMarizanne Kapp.[12][20] It marked the first time a WBBL team had won a match when needing more than four runs off the final legal delivery.[b][25] The ramifications of the result were season-shaping as the Renegades went on to edge out the Sixers for fourth spot on the ladder, making it the first season the Sixers would fail to qualify for finals.[26]
The Renegades hold an 8–4 record over their cross-town rivals, theMelbourne Stars. Noteworthy matches include:
1 January 2017,Melbourne Cricket Ground: Played in front of a reported crowd of 24,547—as part of a double-header with the men's BBL, setting a new record for the highest non-standalone WBBL attendance—the rain-affected match ended in anticlimactic fashion with the Renegades adjudged nine-wicket winners via theDuckworth–Lewis–Stern method.[27] Stars captainMeg Lanning initially protested the ruling with officiating umpires, claiming she had been given false information about the par score by the match referee.[28]
20 January 2018, Melbourne Cricket Ground: Chasing 119 for victory, Renegades captainAmy Satterthwaite—who looked to have been run out earlier in the innings and left the field, but was recalled after TV replays showed wicket-keeperNicole Faltum had dislodged the bails prematurely—hit a six off the final delivery against the bowling ofGeorgia Elwiss to tie the game. With scores still level after the super over, the Stars were awarded the win on the boundary count back rule.[29][30]
29 December 2018,Docklands Stadium: The Renegades recorded the second one-wicket victory in the league's history whenLea Tahuhu, afast bowler not known for her batting ability, hit the winning single off Stars captainKristen Beams with just one ball to spare. Courtney Webb, on 21not out, was the set batter at the non-striker's end.[25][31]
Despite winning multiple championships in the league's early years, theBrisbane Heat have relatively struggled against the Renegades. Across the competition's first five seasons, the Renegades were the only team to beat the Heat more often than not.[32] Noteworthy matches include:
23 December 2017, Docklands Stadium: Batting first, the Heat were bowled out for 66, equalling the WBBL record for lowestall out total.[33] The Renegades chased the target down with ten wickets in hand and 55 balls remaining, also setting a new WBBL record for largest victory by a team batting second.[34][35]
27 November 2019,Allan Border Field: Targeting 184 runs to win, the Renegades set a new WBBL record for highest successful chase by sealing victory with six wickets in hand and six balls remaining.[36]
7 December 2019, Allan Border Field: The Heat, on their way to a second consecutive title, chased down the Renegades' total of 4/163 with four wickets and 12 balls to spare in the first-ever semi-final encounter between the two teams. Wicket-keeperJosie Dooley, having won a championship with Brisbane in the previous season, top-scored for the Renegades with 50 not out.[37]
The following is a list of cricketers who have played for the Renegades after making their debut in thenational women's team (the period they spent as both a Renegades squad member and an Australian-capped player is in brackets):
^In a20 January 2017 match, theMelbourne Stars initially required 6 runs off the last ball but theHobart Hurricanes conceded a boundary off ano-ball, and the Stars went on to score just one run off the final legal delivery to secure victory. The bowler wasAmy Satterthwaite and the on-strike batter wasJess Duffin—two future Renegades captains who would both coincidentally miss the 17 November 2019 game due to pregnancy-related reasons.[21][22][23][24]
^ESPNcricinfo erroneously creditedChamari Atapattu as the Renegades' captain for a match on 24 January 2018.[39][40][41]
^The Renegades did not host any games in WBBL|06 and WBBL|07 due to state border restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic.[73]
^New ZealanderHayley Jensen was classed as a local player for the Renegades in WBBL|03 due to her permanent residence in Australia and having made a lack of recent international cricket appearances[75][76]
Current season
Shabnim Ismail (WBBL|01, 08)
Rachel Priest (WBBL|01–02)
Chamari Atapattu (WBBL|03, 05, 08)
Harmanpreet Kaur (WBBL|07–09)
Mariko Hill (WBBL|01)[77]
Rubina Chhetri (WBBL|02)[78]
Gaby Lewis (WBBL|03)[79]
Tara Norris (WBBL|10)[80]
