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Personnel | ||
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Captain | ![]() ![]() | |
Coach | ![]() | |
Team information | ||
Colours | Lime Green | |
Founded | 2011 | |
Home ground | Sydney Showground Stadium | |
Capacity | Approx. 21,500 [1] | |
History | ||
BBL wins | 1 (BBL05) | |
Official website | Sydney Thunder | |
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Seasons | |
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The Sydney Thunder are an Australian franchise professional cricket team, competing in Australia's domestic Twenty20 cricket competition, the Big Bash League. [2] [3] Along with the Sydney Sixers, the Thunder are the successors of the New South Wales Blues who played in the now-defunct KFC Twenty20 Big Bash. The team's home ground is Sydney Showground Stadium.
Along with the Sydney Sixers, the Sydney Thunder are the successors of the New South Wales Blues who played in the now-defunct KFC Twenty20 Big Bash. The NSW Cricket board unanimously decided on lime green as the team's colour, though other colours were considered, and rejected as being too close to other Sydney sports teams. [2] Cricket Australia did not allow Cricket NSW to use the sky blue colour traditionally associated with New South Wales sports teams.
The team made their debut in the 2011-12 Big Bash League season – the inaugural season of the Big Bash League. The team performed poorly in its first years in the competition, finishing last in each of its first three seasons and second last in its fourth season.
From 2011 to 2014, the Thunder's home ground was Stadium Australia in Sydney Olympic Park. [4] The team played their final two games of the 2014-15 Big Bash League season at Sydney Showground Stadium after they were unable to use Stadium Australia due to the 2015 AFC Asian Cup association football tournament. In June 2015, the Thunder announced they would leave Stadium Australia and play all home games at Sydney Showground Stadium until the 2024–25 BBL season. [1]
The 2015–16 Big Bash League season marked the first year in which the Thunder finished in the top half of the table, finishing 4th overall. Having won the first three games of the season and boasting a squad including Michael Hussey, Shane Watson, Usman Khawaja and Jacques Kallis, the Thunder soon became the favourites to win the tournament. However, the Thunder lost their following four games and were in danger of missing the finals. In their final game of the 2015–16 Big Bash League season, the Thunder defeated the Sixers for only the second time in their history to book a finals berth. The Thunder faced the Adelaide Strikers at Adelaide Oval in the first semi final, winning convincingly. The Thunder then faced the Stars in the Finals the Melbourne Stars. The final was played at Melbourne Cricket Ground on 24 January 2016 and resulted in the Thunder defeating the Melbourne Stars by 3 wickets. Michael Hussey announced his retirement from domestic cricket during BBL05, at the conclusion of the tournament he was announced the club's Director of Cricket, responsible for managing recruitment, contracts, facilities and scouting for the BBL squad. The Thunder were the most watched sports team in Australia during 2015-16 with an average TV audience of 1.2m.
Shane Watson was elected to captain the side in 2016. [5] [6] Watson captained the Thunder for three seasons, failing to qualify for the finals in each of them.
In 2019, Callum Ferguson was named as the new Thunder captain, subsequently qualifying for the finals during his two seasons in charge. Chris Green and Jason Sangha shared the captaincy role for the COVID-19 affected 2021-22 season as the Thunder were knocked out in their first finals game after finishing 3rd on the ladder.
In a league game on 16 December 2022 against the Adelaide Strikers, the Thunder were dismissed for 15 in 5.5 overs, breaking the record for both the shortest completed innings and the lowest score in one in all men's professional T20 matches. [7]
MoneyGram Thunder Nation Cup
The MoneyGram Thunder Nation Cup gives cricket players from seven cultural backgrounds the chance to experience the fun and excitement of Twenty20 cricket, whilst representing their community. The winning team from each community cricket round will represent their country in the MoneyGram Thunder Nation Cup Semi Finals, with the two winners of the semi-finals playing off in a Grand Final prior to a Sydney Thunder match at Spotless Stadium.
Thunder Bus
The Thunder Bus travels around schools and cricket club in Sydney and Regional NSW, it has an interactive quiz and inflatable nets. The Thunder Bus directly engaged with 100,000 children aged between 5- 12 during this period and was seen by over 1 Million people.
Sydney Thunder, like every other team, had a salary cap of $1 million for the first season of the Big Bash League, but in that season they spent almost half of the salary cap on the explosive opening combination of Chris Gayle and David Warner. Gayle was pursued by Perth Scorchers but he rejected an offer of $250,000 to stay with the New South Wales team. [8] [9]
S/N | Name | Nationality | Date of birth (age) | Batting style | Bowling style | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Batters | ||||||
3 | Sam Whiteman | ![]() | 19 March 1992 | Left-handed | Left-arm medium | |
6 | Alex Hales | ![]() | 5 January 1989 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | Overseas Draft Pick |
9 | Oliver Davies | ![]() | 15 October 2000 | Right-handed | Right-arm off break | |
23 | Jason Sangha | ![]() | 8 September 1999 | Right-handed | Right arm leg spin | |
31 | David Warner | ![]() | 27 October 1986 | Left-handed | Right arm leg break | Cricket Australia Contract |
32 | Rilee Rossouw | ![]() | 9 October 1989 | Left-handed | Right arm off break | Overseas Draft Pick |
45 | Blake Nikitaras | ![]() | 29 April 2000 | Left-handed | - | |
49 | Alex Ross | ![]() | 17 April 1992 | Right-handed | Right-arm off-break | |
All-rounders | ||||||
5 | Ben Cutting | ![]() | 30 January 1987 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | |
93 | Chris Green | ![]() | 1 October 1993 | Right-handed | Right-arm off break | |
95 | Daniel Sams | ![]() | 27 October 1992 | Right-handed | Left-arm fast medium | |
Wicket-Keepers | ||||||
22 | Matt Gilkes | ![]() | 21 August 1999 | Left-handed | Left-arm medium | |
27 | Baxter Holt | ![]() | 21 October 1999 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | |
Pace Bowlers | ||||||
7 | Ross Pawson | ![]() | 15 November 1994 | Right-handed | Right-arm fast medium | Local Replacement Player |
28 | Gurinder Sandhu | ![]() | 14 June 1993 | Right-handed | Right arm fast medium | |
35 | Brendan Doggett | ![]() | 3 May 1994 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium-fast | |
44 | Nathan McAndrew | ![]() | 14 July 1993 | Right-handed | Right-arm fast medium | |
- | Ryan Hadley | ![]() | 17 November 1998 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium-fast | Local Replacement Player |
Spin Bowlers | ||||||
17 | Tanveer Sangha | ![]() | 26 November 2001 | Right-handed | Right arm leg spin | |
72 | Usman Qadir | ![]() | 10 August 1993 | Left-handed | Right-arm leg spin | International Replacement Player |
77 | Joel Davies | ![]() | 28 October 2003 | Left-handed | Slow left arm orthodox | |
- | Toby Gray | ![]() | 16 October 2001 | Right-handed | Right-arm leg spin | Local Replacement Player |
Year | Finishing Position | Finals |
---|---|---|
2011–12 | 8th | DNQ |
2012–13 | 8th | DNQ |
2013–14 | 8th | DNQ |
2014–15 | 7th | DNQ |
2015–16 | 4th | Champions |
2016–17 | 8th | DNQ |
2017–18 | 6th | DNQ |
2018–19 | 6th | DNQ |
2019–20 | 5th | 3rd |
2020–21 | 3rd | 4th |
2021–22 | 3rd | 4th |
2022–23 | 4th | 5th |
[10] | Name | Years captain | Captained | Won | Lost | Tied [*] | NR | % [**] |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | David Warner | 2011 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100.00% |
2 | Daniel Smith | 2011–2012 | 6 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 16.66% |
3 | Chris Rogers | 2012 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0% |
4 | Chris Gayle | 2013 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0% |
5 | Michael Hussey | 2013–2016 | 23 | 9 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 39.13% |
6 | Chris Hartley | 2015 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0% |
7 | Shane Watson | 2016–2019 | 31 | 13 | 17 | 0 | 1 | 43.33% |
8 | Ben Rohrer | 2016 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0% |
9 | Callum Ferguson | 2019–2021 | 32 | 16 | 14 | 1 | 1 | 53.22% |
10 | Usman Khawaja | 2021–2022 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 50.00% |
11 | Chris Green | 2021– | 24 | 13 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 54.16% |
12 | Jason Sangha | 2021- | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 50.00% |
^* Includes matches determined by a Super Over ^** Ties counted as half a win
When the league began in 2011, Cricket Australia decided they would place two teams in Sydney. With the core group of players for both sides coming from the New South Wales cricket team, this rivalry automatically becomes widely anticipated in Sydney. In the first four seasons of the BBL the Thunder lost all seven Sydney Derby games to the Sixers. However, in the first match of the fifth Big Bash League, the Thunder scored their first win against the Sixers, breaking the hoodoo set in place by their rivals in Magenta. The season also marked the first time the Thunder beat the Sixers in both games contested during the season. [11] As at 2020, all subsequent seasons have had one win by each team.
No. | Date | Winner | Margin | Venue | Attendance | MoM |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 8 January 2012 | Sixers | 17 Runs (D/L) | ANZ Stadium | 31,262 | Mitchell Starc |
2 | 8 December 2012 | Sixers | 7 Wickets | SCG | 15,279 | Brad Haddin |
3 | 30 December 2012 | Sixers | 4 Wickets | ANZ Stadium | 20,986 | Daniel Hughes |
4 | 21 December 2013 | Sixers | 6 Wickets | SCG | 18,180 | Nic Maddinson |
5 | 25 January 2014 | Sixers | 8 Wickets | ANZ Stadium | 25,726 | Nathan Lyon |
6 | 27 December 2014 | Sixers | 16 Runs | ANZ Stadium | 32,823 | Aiden Blizzard |
7 | 22 January 2015 | Sixers | 4 Wickets | SCG | 36,487 | Jordan Silk |
8 | 17 December 2015 | Thunder | 36 Runs | Spotless Stadium | 18,287 | Michael Hussey |
9 | 16 January 2016 | Thunder | 46 Runs | SCG | 38,456 | Shane Watson |
10 | 20 December 2016 | Sixers | 9 Wickets | Spotless Stadium | 21,798 | Moises Henriques |
11 | 14 January 2017 | Thunder | 8 Wickets | SCG | 39,756 | Fawad Ahmed |
12 | 19 December 2017 | Thunder | 5 Wickets | Spotless Stadium | 21,589 | Shane Watson |
13 | 13 January 2018 | Sixers | 8 Wickets | SCG | 36,458 | Chris Green |
14 | 24 December 2018 | Thunder | 21 Runs | Spotless Stadium | 10,508 | Jos Buttler |
15 | 2 February 2019 | Sixers | 9 Wickets (D/L) | SCG | 34,385 | Sean Abbott |
16 | 28 December 2019 | Sixers | Super Over | SCG | 35,296 | Tom Curran |
17 | 18 January 2020 | Thunder | 4 Runs (D/L) | Giants Stadium | 15,476 | Chris Morris |
18 | 13 January 2021 | Sixers | 5 Wickets (D/L) | Manuka Oval | Steve O'Keefe | |
19 | 21 January 2021 | Thunder | 46 Runs | Adelaide Oval | Alex Hales |
Season | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor | Back sponsor | Breast sponsor | Sleeve sponsor |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2011–12 | KooGa | Cudo | |||
2012–13 | Webjet | ||||
2013–14 | University of Canberra | ||||
2014–15 | Majestic Athletic | Mazda | Spot Jobs | ||
2015–16 | Homeworld | ||||
2016–17 | |||||
2017–18 | |||||
2018–19 | Homestar | ||||
2019–20 | |||||
2020-21 | |||||
2021-22 | Nike | Homestar | Sixt | What's Your Plan B? | |
2022-23 |
The following players have been imported to play for Sydney Thunder in the Big Bash League: [12]
BBL | Player | Country |
---|---|---|
BBL11 | Saqib Mahmood | England |
BBL10 –BBL11 | Sam Billings | England |
BBL09 – | Alex Hales | England |
BBL10 | Adam Milne | New Zealand |
BBL06 | Carlos Brathwaite | West Indies |
BBL09 | South Africa | |
BBL08 | Jos Butler | England |
BBL04 | Cameron Delport | South Africa |
BBL08 | Anton Devcich | New Zealand |
BBL03 | Tillakaratne Dilshan | Sri Lanka |
BBL01 | Fidel Edwards | West Indies |
BBL01 –BBL02 | Chris Gayle | West Indies |
BBL02 | Martin Guptill | New Zealand |
BBL08 | Chris Jordan | England |
BBL04 –BBL05 | Jacques Kallis | South Africa |
BBL04 + | Craig Kieswetter | England |
BBL07 | Mitchell McClenaghan | New Zealand |
BBL01 | Azhar Mahmood | Pakistan |
BBL03 | Ajantha Mendis | Sri Lanka |
BBL03 and BBL06 | Eoin Morgan | Ireland/England |
BBL05 | Henry Nicholls | New Zealand |
BBL02 | Matt Prior | England |
BBL08 | Joe Root | England |
BBL04 | Jason Roy | England |
BBL05 | Andre Russell | West Indies |
BBL06 | James Vince | England |
BBL03 | Chris Woakes | England |
+= Did not play a game
The Sydney Showground is a purpose-built venue used each year for the Sydney Royal Easter Show. Located at Sydney Olympic Park in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, it was opened in 1998, as a venue for the 2000 Summer Olympics and to replace the former Sydney Showground at Moore Park. Sydney Showground is operated by the Royal Agricultural Society of NSW (RAS), under lease from the NSW Government.
Daniel Lindsay Richard Smith is a former Australian cricketer. He played for New South Wales in the Pura Cup and Ford Ranger Cup competitions. He was involved in the thrilling 2008–09 KFC Twenty20 Big Bash final, scoring 1 not out and running through for a quick bye on the last ball to secure victory for the Blues. Smith also starred in the 2009 Champions League Twenty20 for the victorious NSW Blues. Daniel was the equal leading wicketkeeper for the series with four dismissals including 3 stumpings.
Craig Joseph Simmons is an Australian former professional cricketer. He played domestically for Western Australia, New South Wales, Perth Scorchers and Adelaide Strikers. At grade cricket level, he plays for Rockingham-Mandurah in the WACA district competition, having previously played for Fremantle in WACA district matches and Gordon in Sydney Grade Cricket matches. A left-handed batsman, Simmons represented the Australian national under-19 side at the 2002 Under-19 World Cup, playing seven matches. At the tournament, he scored 155 runs from 115 balls against Kenya's under-19 team, contributing to Australia's total of 6/480 from 50 overs and eventual win by 430 runs.
The Big Bash League is an Australian professional club Twenty20 cricket league, which was established in 2011 by Cricket Australia. The Big Bash League replaced the previous competition, the KFC Twenty20 Big Bash, and features eight city-based franchises instead of the six state teams which had participated previously. The competition has been sponsored by fast food-chicken outlet KFC since its inception. It is one of the two T20 cricket leagues, alongside the Indian Premier League, to feature amongst the top ten domestic sport leagues in average attendance. The winner of BBL 11 (2021/2022) was the Perth Scorchers who beat the Sydney Sixers by 79 runs in the final.
The Sydney Sixers are an Australian professional franchise men's cricket team, competing in Australia's domestic Twenty20 cricket competition, the Big Bash League (BBL). Along with the Sydney Thunder, the Sixers are the successors of the New South Wales Blues who played in the now-defunct KFC Twenty20 Big Bash. The Sixers play at Sydney Cricket Ground in the south-eastern area of the inner city while the Thunder play out of Sydney Showground Stadium further west. The inaugural coach was Trevor Bayliss, who was replaced in 2015 by current coach Greg Shipperd. The Sixers' inaugural captain was Australian wicket-keeper Brad Haddin. Both Steve Smith and Moises Henriques have also spent time captaining the team.
The Perth Scorchers is an Australian domestic Twenty20 franchise cricket team representing the Western Australian city of Perth in the Big Bash League (BBL).
The Adelaide Strikers are an Australian professional Twenty20 franchise cricket team based in Adelaide, South Australia that compete in the Big Bash League (BBL). Their home ground is the Adelaide Oval, and they play in a cornflower blue uniform. The Strikers were formed in 2011 to play in the BBL, succeeding the Southern Redbacks, who played in the now-defunct KFC Twenty20 Big Bash competition. Their sole victory in the BBL came in 2017–18.
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The Brisbane Heat are an Australian men's professional Twenty20 franchise cricket team that competes in the Big Bash League. The Heat wears a teal uniform and are based in Brisbane in the Australian state Queensland. Their home ground is the Brisbane Cricket Ground, also known as The Gabba.
Sydney Showground Stadium is a sports and events stadium located at the Sydney Showground in Sydney Olympic Park. It hosted the baseball events for the 2000 Summer Olympics. The Showground, including the stadium, is operated by the Royal Agricultural Society of NSW (RAS), under lease from the New South Wales Government.
The 2014–15 Big Bash League season or BBL|04 was the fourth season of the Big Bash League (BBL), the premier Twenty20 cricket competition in Australia. The fourth edition ran from 18 December 2014 to 28 January 2015. The league ran two weeks longer as compared to the previous season. The opening match of the 2014–15 Big Bash League was played between Adelaide Strikers and Melbourne Stars on 18 December at the Adelaide Oval. The format of fourth season is same as previous season. A total of 35 matches will be played during the Big Bash 2014–15 season.
The Women's Big Bash League is the Australian women's domestic Twenty20 cricket competition. The WBBL replaced the Australian Women's Twenty20 Cup, which ran from the 2007–08 season through to 2014–15. The competition features eight city-based franchises, branded identically to the men's Big Bash League (BBL). Teams are made up of current and former Australian national team members, the country's best young talent, and up to three overseas marquee players.
The 2015–16 Big Bash League season (BBL|05) was the fifth season of the Big Bash League (BBL), the premier Twenty20 cricket competition in Australia. The tournament ran from 17 December 2015 to 24 January 2016.
The Sydney Sixers (WBBL) are an Australian women's Twenty20 cricket team based in Moore Park, New South Wales. They are one of two teams from Sydney to compete in the Women's Big Bash League, the other being the Sydney Thunder. Having won two championship titles and four minor premierships, the Sixers are the most successful WBBL franchise to date.
The Sydney Thunder (WBBL) are an Australian women's Twenty20 cricket team based in Sydney Olympic Park, New South Wales. They are one of two teams from Sydney to compete in the Women's Big Bash League, the other being the Sydney Sixers. The Thunder have claimed two WBBL titles, winning the league's inaugural championship and the 2020–21 title.
The 2016–17 Big Bash League season or BBL|06 was the sixth season of the KFC Big Bash League, the professional men's Twenty20 domestic cricket competition in Australia. The tournament ran from 20 December 2016 to 28 January 2017. The format of the tournament was identical to previous seasons. Each team played eight group stage matches, four at home and four away, before the top four ranked teams progressed to the Semi-finals.
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The 2021–22 Big Bash League season or BBL|11 was the eleventh season of the Big Bash League, the professional men's Twenty20 domestic cricket competition in Australia. The tournament was played from 5 December 2021 and finished on 28 January 2022. The Perth Scorchers defeated the defending champions Sydney Sixers by 79 runs in the final to claim their fourth title.
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