# 2021–22 Melbourne Stars WBBL season

The 2021–22 Melbourne Stars Women's season was the seventh in the team's history. Coached by Jarrad Loughman and captained by Meg Lanning, the Stars were not scheduled to play any WBBL|07 games in their home state of Victoria due to ongoing border restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic. They finished the regular season in fifth place on the ladder, failing to qualify for the knockout stage of the tournament.

## Squad

Each 2021–22 squad was made up of 15 active players. Teams could sign up to five 'marquee players', with a maximum of three of those from overseas. Marquees were classed as any overseas player, or a local player who holds a Cricket Australia national contract at the start of the WBBL|07 signing period.
Personnel changes made ahead of the season included:
* English marquees Katherine Brunt and Nat Sciver did not re-sign with the Stars in anticipation of a clashing schedule with national team duties.
* South African marquee Mignon du Preez departed the Stars, signing with the Hobart Hurricanes.
* Irish marquee Kim Garth signed with the Stars, having previously played in the league for the Sydney Sixers and Perth Scorchers.
* English marquees Maia Bouchier and Linsey Smith signed with the Stars, marking their first appearances in the league.
* Holly Ferling departed the Stars, signing with the Melbourne Renegades.
* Alana King departed the Stars, signing with the Perth Scorchers.
* Maddy Darke signed with the Stars, departing the Sydney Sixers.
* Jarrad Loughman was appointed head coach, replacing Trent Woodhill.
The table below lists the Stars players and their key stats (including runs scored, batting strike rate, wickets taken, economy rate, catches and stumpings) for the season.
| No. | Name | Birth date | Batting style | Bowling style | G | R | SR | W | E | C | S | Notes |
| Batters ||||||||||||||
| 14 | Maia Bouchier | 5 December 1998 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | 12 | 185 | 95.36 | – | – | 3 | – | Overseas marquee |
| 9 | Anna Lanning | 25 March 1994 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | 5 | 3 | 30.00 | 0 | 6.00 | 1 | – | |
| 7 | Meg Lanning | 25 March 1992 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | 12 | 250 | 104.16 | – | – | 3 | – | Captain, Australian marquee |
| 2 | Elyse Villani | 6 October 1989 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | 12 | 439 | 122.28 | – | – | 2 | – | |
| All-rounders ||||||||||||||
| 24 | Lucy Cripps | 6 December 2001 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | 1 | – | – | 0 | 12.50 | 0 | – | |
| 16 | Georgia Gall | 30 July 2004 | Left-handed | Left-arm medium fast | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | |
| 34 | Kim Garth | 25 April 1996 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium fast | 12 | 164 | 106.49 | 15 | 6.24 | 5 | – | Overseas marquee |
| 11 | Rhys McKenna | 17 August 2004 | Right-handed | Left-arm medium fast | 8 | 10 | 100.00 | 3 | 7.83 | 1 | – | |
| 76 | Erin Osborne | 27 June 1989 | Right-handed | Right-arm off spin | 9 | 45 | 63.38 | 3 | 6.82 | 1 | – | |
| 3 | Annabel Sutherland | 12 October 2001 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium fast | 12 | 143 | 82.65 | 14 | 6.42 | 4 | – | Australian marquee |
| Wicket-keepers ||||||||||||||
| 17 | Maddy Darke | 30 March 2001 | Right-handed | Right-arm off spin | 4 | 7 | 116.66 | – | – | 1 | – | |
| 4 | Nicole Faltum | 17 January 2000 | Right-handed | – | 12 | 17 | 62.96 | – | – | 3 | 2 | |
| Bowlers ||||||||||||||
| 6 | Sophie Day | 2 September 1998 | Left-handed | Left-arm orthodox spin | 10 | 14 | 93.33 | 4 | 7.55 | 2 | – | |
| 25 | Tess Flintoff | 31 March 2003 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium fast | 12 | 43 | 93.47 | 9 | 7.02 | 2 | – | |
| 50 | Linsey Smith | 10 March 1995 | Left-handed | Left-arm orthodox spin | 11 | 18 | 78.26 | 6 | 5.80 | 5 | – | Overseas marquee |

## Ladder

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | L | NR | Pts | NRR |
| 1 | Perth Scorchers (C) | 14 | 9 | 3 | 2 | 20 | 0.649 |
| 2 | Melbourne Renegades (CF) | 14 | 8 | 4 | 2 | 18 | −0.149 |
| 3 | Brisbane Heat (EF) | 14 | 8 | 5 | 1 | 17 | 0.517 |
| 4 | Adelaide Strikers (RU) | 14 | 7 | 6 | 1 | 15 | 0.707 |
| 5 | Melbourne Stars | 14 | 5 | 7 | 2 | 12 | −0.385 |
| 6 | Hobart Hurricanes | 14 | 5 | 8 | 1 | 11 | −0.258 |
| 7 | Sydney Thunder | 14 | 4 | 8 | 2 | 10 | −0.301 |
| 8 | Sydney Sixers | 14 | 4 | 9 | 1 | 9 | −0.704 |
* The top 4 teams advanced to the knockout phase

## Fixtures

All times are local
* Match 1 14 October 2021 19:40 (N) Scorecard
| Melbourne Stars 1/99 (11 overs) | v | Sydney Sixers 4/100 (10.2 overs) |
| Elyse Villani 54* (31) | | Alyssa Healy 57 (27) Rhys McKenna 1/9 (1 over) |
* Sydney Sixers won by 6 wickets (with 4 balls remaining) Blundstone Arena, Hobart Umpires: Roberto Howard and David Taylor Player of the match: Alyssa Healy (Sydney Sixers)
* Sydney Sixers won the toss and elected to field.
* The match was reduced to 11 overs per side due to rain.
* Broadcast by Seven Network and Foxtel
* Match 6 19 October 2021 13:25 Scorecard
| Hobart Hurricanes 4/152 (20 overs) | v | Melbourne Stars 89 (19.2 overs) |
| Rachel Priest 107* (68) Annabel Sutherland 2/22 (4 overs) | | Meg Lanning 25 (28) Ruth Johnston 4/8 (3.2 overs) |
* Hobart Hurricanes won by 63 runs Blundstone Arena, Hobart Umpires: Simon Lightbody and Mattis van Eck Player of the match: Rachel Priest (Hobart Hurricanes)
* Melbourne Stars won the toss and elected to field.
* Broadcast by Cricket Network and Foxtel
* Match 9 20 October 2021 16:50 (D/N) Scorecard
| Melbourne Stars 3/139 (20 overs) | v | Sydney Sixers 8/109 (20 overs) |
| Annabel Sutherland 57 (50) Ashleigh Gardner 2/16 (4 overs) | | Ellyse Perry 40 (43) Kim Garth 3/17 (4 overs) |
* Melbourne Stars won by 30 runs Blundstone Arena, Hobart Umpires: Roberto Howard and Mattis van Eck Player of the match: Annabel Sutherland (Melbourne Stars)
* Sydney Sixers won the toss and elected to field.
* Broadcast by Cricket Network and Foxtel
* Match 11 23 October 2021 14:00 Scorecard
| Melbourne Stars | v | Brisbane Heat |
* Match abandoned Invermay Park, Launceston Umpires: Andrew Crozier and Mattis van Eck
* No toss
* No play was possible due to rain.
* Broadcast by Cricket Network and Foxtel
* Match 17 26 October 2021 13:25 Scorecard
| Melbourne Stars 7/108 (20 overs) | v | Sydney Thunder 5/96 (20 overs) |
| Elyse Villani 52 (63) Issy Wong 2/19 (4 overs) | | Deepti Sharma 44* (48) Kim Garth 3/11 (4 overs) |
* Melbourne Stars won by 12 runs University of Tasmania Stadium, Launceston Umpires: Andrew Crozier and David Taylor Player of the match: Kim Garth (Melbourne Stars)
* Melbourne Stars won the toss and elected to bat.
* Broadcast by Cricket Network and Foxtel
* Match 20 27 October 2021 16:50 (D/N) Scorecard
| Melbourne Stars 4/144 (20 overs) | v | Hobart Hurricanes 4/147 (19.2 overs) |
| Kim Garth 44* (29) Tayla Vlaeminck 3/27 (4 overs) | | Mignon du Preez 62 (45) Sophie Day 1/17 (2 overs) |
* Hobart Hurricanes won by 6 wickets (with 4 balls remaining) University of Tasmania Stadium, Launceston Umpires: Simon Lightbody and Claire Polosak Player of the match: Mignon du Preez (Hobart Hurricanes)
* Hobart Hurricanes won the toss and elected to field.
* Broadcast by Cricket Network and Foxtel
* Match 22 30 October 2021 16:05 (D/N) Scorecard
| Sydney Thunder 5/133 (20 overs) | v | Melbourne Stars 8/114 (20 overs) |
| Tahlia Wilson 53 (53) Erin Osborne 2/25 (4 overs) | | Elyse Villani 38 (31) Deepti Sharma 3/25 (4 overs) |
* Sydney Thunder won by 19 runs University of Tasmania Stadium, Launceston Umpires: Roberto Howard and Jeremiah Matibiri Player of the match: Samantha Bates (Sydney Thunder)
* Sydney Thunder won the toss and elected to bat.
* Broadcast by Cricket Network and Foxtel
* Match 27 31 October 2021 13:40 Scorecard
| Brisbane Heat 9/95 (20 overs) | v | Melbourne Stars 2/99 (16.4 overs) |
| Grace Harris 28 (23) Annabel Sutherland 3/21 (4 overs) | | Maia Bouchier 32* (34) Nicola Hancock 1/14 (3 overs) |
* Melbourne Stars won by 8 wickets (with 20 balls remaining) University of Tasmania Stadium, Launceston Umpires: Andrew Crozier and David Taylor Player of the match: Tess Flintoff (Melbourne Stars)
* Brisbane Heat won the toss and elected to bat.
* Broadcast by Seven Network and Foxtel
* Match 32 6 November 2021 13:10 Scorecard
| Melbourne Stars 4/126 (14 overs) | v | Adelaide Strikers 8/89 (14 overs) |
| Meg Lanning 82 (45) Dane van Niekerk 2/15 (2 overs) | | Katie Mack 14* (8) Rhys McKenna 2/3 (1 over) |
* Melbourne Stars won by 37 runs Karen Rolton Oval, Adelaide Umpires: Simon Lightbody and David Taylor Player of the match: Meg Lanning (Melbourne Stars)
* Adelaide Strikers won the toss and elected to field.
* The match was reduced to 14 overs per side due to rain.
* Broadcast by Cricket Network and Foxtel
* Match 35 7 November 2021 13:10 Scorecard
| Melbourne Stars 103 (20 overs) | v | Melbourne Renegades 3/104 (14.1 overs) |
| Kim Garth 32 (24) Harmanpreet Kaur 3/22 (4 overs) | | Jemimah Rodrigues 45 (38) Kim Garth 2/23 (4 overs) |
* Melbourne Renegades won by 7 wickets (with 35 balls remaining) Adelaide Oval, Adelaide Umpires: Simon Lightbody and Eloise Sheridan Player of the match: Sophie Molineux (Melbourne Renegades)
* Melbourne Stars won the toss and elected to bat.
* Broadcast by Seven Network and Foxtel
* Match 39 10 November 2021 12:55 Scorecard
| Melbourne Stars 9/97 (20 overs) | v | Perth Scorchers 0/98 (10.5 overs) |
| Kim Garth 31 (31) Sophie Devine 2/11 (3 overs) | | Beth Mooney 57* (38) |
* Perth Scorchers won by 10 wickets (with 55 balls remaining) Karen Rolton Oval, Adelaide Umpires: D Bhatt and Simon Lightbody Player of the match: Sophie Devine (Perth Scorchers)
* Melbourne Stars won the toss and elected to bat.
* Broadcast by Cricket Network and Foxtel
* Match 42 11 November 2021 16:20 (D/N) Scorecard
| Melbourne Renegades | v | Melbourne Stars |
* Match abandoned Karen Rolton Oval, Adelaide Umpires: Eloise Sheridan and David Taylor
* No toss
* No play was possible due to rain.
* Broadcast by Cricket Network and Foxtel
* Match 51 20 November 2021 09:45 Scorecard
| Melbourne Stars 7/122 (20 overs) | v | Perth Scorchers 6/123 (20 overs) |
| Elyse Villani 84 (66) Heather Graham 3/16 (4 overs) | | Mathilda Carmichael 30 (20) Annabel Sutherland 2/20 (4 overs) |
* Perth Scorchers won by 4 wickets (with 0 balls remaining) Adelaide Oval, Adelaide Umpires: Claire Polosak and Eloise Sheridan Player of the match: Heather Graham (Perth Scorchers)
* Perth Scorchers won the toss and elected to field.
* Broadcast by Seven Network and Foxtel
* Melbourne Stars were eliminated from finals contention.
* Match 56 21 November 2021 13:10 Scorecard
| Adelaide Strikers 3/175 (20 overs) | v | Melbourne Stars 1/181 (19.3 overs) |
| Katie Mack 89* (67) Annabel Sutherland 2/33 (4 overs) | | Elyse Villani 100* (65) Megan Schutt 1/20 (4 overs) |
* Melbourne Stars won by 9 wickets (with 3 balls remaining) Adelaide Oval, Adelaide Umpires: Shawn Craig and Claire Polosak Player of the match: Elyse Villani (Melbourne Stars)
* Adelaide Strikers won the toss and elected to bat.
* Broadcast by Seven Network and Foxtel
* Former Australian player Erin Osborne made her last WBBL appearance.

## Statistics and awards

* Most runs: Elyse Villani – 439 (4th in the league)
* Highest score in an innings: Elyse Villani – 100* (65) vs Adelaide Strikers, 21 November
* Most wickets: Kim Garth – 15 (equal 9th in the league)
* Best bowling figures in an innings: Kim Garth – 3/11 (4 overs) vs Sydney Thunder, 26 October
* Most catches (fielder): Kim Garth, Linsey Smith – 5 each (equal 16th in the league)
* Player of the Match awards: Tess Flintoff, Kim Garth, Meg Lanning, Annabel Sutherland, Elyse Villani – 1 each
* Stars Player of the Season: Kim Garth