Melbourne Stars (WBBL)

The Melbourne Stars are an Australian women's Twenty20 cricket team based in Melbourne, Victoria. They are one of two teams from Melbourne to compete in the Women's Big Bash League, the other being the Melbourne Renegades. To date, the Stars' best performance occurred in WBBL06 when they ended the regular season as minor premiers before ultimately finishing as runners-up.

On 2 June 2026, it was reported that the brands of the Stars and the Melbourne Renegades would be merged into a new franchise, utilising the Stars' existing WBBL license. Nick Cummins, the CEO of Cricket Victoria (CV), has described the new team as "just a merger of brands and staff" and "not a merger of the teams". Two weeks later, it was confirmed that both the Stars and the Renegades would compete in the upcoming 2026–27 season under their existing names.

History Formation One of eight founding WBBL teams, the Melbourne Stars are aligned with the men's team of the same name. At the official WBBL launch on 10 July 2015, Meg Lanning was unveiled as the Stars' first-ever player signing. Lanning would also become the team's inaugural captain, while David Hemp was appointed as the inaugural coach.

The Stars played their first match on 5 December against the Brisbane Heat at the Junction Oval, winning by 20 runs.

Rivalries Hobart Hurricanes The Stars and Hobart Hurricanes have combined to produce an inordinate number of matches with close finishes, including:

16 January 2016, Blacktown ISP Oval: On a crumbling pitch, criticised earlier in the Australian summer for its sub-standard preparation, the Stars crawled to a first innings total of 7/96 before fighting back to have the Hurricanes at 4/49 in the twelfth over of the run chase. An unbroken stand of 48 runs from the next 51 balls between Corinne Hall and Amy Satterthwaite steered Hobart out of trouble, with Hall scoring a single on the final delivery to secure victory for the 'Canes. 20 January 2017, Blundstone Arena: In a rain-affected encounter, Hobart posted a first innings total of 3/115 off 14 overs. Chasing a revised target of 98 from twelve overs, Melbourne lost 4/7 late in the match (including the wicket of Emma Inglis for 51 off 31) to leave a required twelve runs from the last two balls for victory. Jess Cameron proceeded to hit a six off the penultimate legal delivery before Hurricanes off-spinner Amy Satterthwaite bowled a front-foot no-ball while also conceding a four on what would have otherwise been the final ball of the innings. With Satterthwaite having to bowl the final delivery again, Cameron scored the remaining single needed to pull off an unlikely six-wicket win for the Stars. 21 January 2017, Blundstone Arena: The following morning, on the last day of the WBBL|02 regular season, the Stars and Hurricanes met again—this time in what was effectively a quarter-final knockout match with the winner progressing to the semi-finals and the loser being eliminated from the tournament. Meg Lanning made 81 runs for the Stars in the first innings, earning Player of the Match honours, but was dismissed in the 19th over by a stunning Julie Hunter catch at square leg. A spell of 3/11 off four overs by Kristen Beams was not enough to defend the target of 136 as the Hurricanes scored the winning runs (through Corinne Hall again) with four wickets in hand and one ball remaining.

Melbourne Renegades Noteworthy matches between the Stars and their cross-town rivals, the Melbourne Renegades, 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 the Duckworth–Lewis–Stern method. Stars captain Meg Lanning initially protested the ruling with officiating umpires, claiming she had been given false information about the par score by the match referee. 20 January 2018, Melbourne Cricket Ground: Chasing 119 for victory, Renegades captain Amy Satterthwaite—who looked to have been run out earlier in the innings and left the field, but was recalled after TV replays showed wicket-keeper Nicole Faltum had dislodged the bails prematurely—hit a six off the final delivery against the bowling of Georgia 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 December 2018, Docklands Stadium: The Renegades recorded the second one-wicket victory in the league's history when Lea Tahuhu, a fast bowler not known for her batting ability, hit the winning single off leg-spinning Stars captain Kristen Beams with just one ball to spare. Courtney Webb, on 21 not out, was the set batter at the non-striker's end.

Captaincy records

There have been six captains in the Stars' history, including matches featuring an acting captain.

CaptainSpanWonLostTiedMeg Lanning2015–236830330547.62Kristen Beams2017–19197120036.84Erin Osborne2018–1910450144.44Elyse Villani2019142120014.29Nicole Faltum202214560345.45Annabel Sutherland2023–252410120245.45 Source:

Season summaries

SeasonFinalsCoachCaptainMost RunsMost WicketsRefs7–75thDNQDavid HempMeg LanningMorna Nielsen – 18Meg Lanning*2016–177–75thDNQDavid HempMeg Lanning2017–185–97thDNQLizelle Lee – 349Erin Osborne – 15Erin Osborne2018–195–87thDNQDavid HempKristen BeamsLizelle Lee – 276Alana King – 15Alana King8thDNQDavid HempElyse VillaniLizelle Lee – 475Erin Osborne – 11Lizelle Lee1st*RUMeg LanningMeg Lanning – 493Nat Sciver – 19Nat Sciver5–75thDNQMeg LanningElyse Villani – 439Kim Garth – 15Kim Garth5–66thDNQNicole FaltumAnnabel Sutherland6–87thDNQJonathan BattyMeg LanningAnnabel Sutherland2–78thDNQJonathan BattyMarizanne Kapp20255–44thKFAndrew ChristieAnnabel SutherlandMeg Lanning – 479Sophie Day – 16Meg Lanning

Legend DNQ Did not qualify SF Semi-finalists * Led the league EF Lost the Eliminator RU Runners-up ^ League record KF Lost the Knockout CF Lost the Challenger C Champions

Home grounds VenueGames hosted by season01 02 03 04 05 06 0708091011 TotalCasey Fields – 2 2 2 – N/A – 1 – – 7Eastern Oval – – – – – 1 – – – 1Jubilee Park – – – – – – 1 – – 1 CitiPower Centre 4 – – 1 6 2 3 3 4 23Melbourne Cricket Ground 2 2 4 2 – – 1 1 – 12Ted Summerton Reserve – – – – – 2 – – – 2Toorak Park – 1 – – – – – – – 1

Current squad The squad of the Melbourne Stars for the 2026 Women's Big Bash League season as of 17 September 2026. Players with international caps are listed in bold.

NameBirth DateBatting StyleBowling StyleAdditional Info.Batters7Meg LanningRight-handedRight-arm medium24Indigo NobleRight-handedRight-arm mediumAll-rounders22Charlie DeanRight-handedRight-arm off spinInternational Signing34Kim GarthRight-handedRight-arm fast28Dani GibsonRight-handedRight-arm mediumInternational Signing11Rhys McKennaRight-handedLeft-arm fast3Annabel SutherlandRight-handedRight-arm fastCaptainWicket-keepers40Amy JonesRight-handedInternational SigningBowlers6Sophie DayLeft-handedLeft-arm orthodox

Players

Australian representatives The following is a list of cricketers who have played for the Melbourne Stars after making their debut in the national women's team (the period they spent as both a Melbourne Stars squad member and an Australian-capped player is in brackets):

Overseas marquees

Associate rookies

Honours

Champions: 0 Runners-Up: 1 – WBBL06 Minor Premiers: 1 – WBBL06 Finals Appearances: 2 – WBBL06, WBBL11 Wooden Spoons: 2 – WBBL05, WBBL10

Statistics and Awards

Team Stats Win–loss record: OppositionWonLostTiedAdelaide Strikers20990250Brisbane Heat218110242.11Hobart Hurricanes218130038.1Melbourne Renegades229110245Perth Scorchers2210120045.45Sydney Sixers2210110147.62Sydney Thunder214130423.53Total149588001142.03 Highest score in an innings: 4/219 (20 overs) vs Sydney Sixers, 20 November 2025 Highest successful chase: 1/181 (19.3 overs) vs Adelaide Strikers, 21 November 2021 Lowest successful defence: 7/108 (20 overs) vs Sydney Thunder, 26 October 2021 Largest victory: Batting first: 111 runs vs Sydney Sixers, 20 November 2025 Batting second: 46 balls remaining vs Hobart Hurricanes, 1 November 2020 Longest winning streak: 6 matches (1–14 November 2020) Longest losing streak: 6 matches (9–22 November 2024)

Source:

Individual Stats Most runs: Meg Lanning – 2,726 Highest score in an innings: Meg Lanning – 135 (79) vs Sydney Sixers, 20 November 2025 Highest partnership: Meg Lanning and Rhys McKenna – 159 vs Sydney Sixers, 20 November 2025 Most wickets: Annabel Sutherland – 100 Best bowling figures in an innings: Sophie Day – 5/25 (4 overs) vs Sydney Sixers, 8 November 2023 Hat-tricks taken: Gemma Triscari vs Sydney Thunder, 15 January 2016 Most catches (fielder): Annabel Sutherland – 42 Most dismissals (wicket-keeper): Nicole Faltum – 39 (23 catches, 16 stumpings)

Source:

Individual Awards Player of the Match: Meg Lanning – 16 Annabel Sutherland – 7 Sophie Day, Alana King, Erin Osborne, and Nat Sciver-Brunt – 3 Tess Flintoff, Kim Garth, Emma Inglis, Lizelle Lee, and Katie Mack – 2 Kristen Beams, Yastika Bhatia, Katherine Brunt, Jess Cameron, Alice Capsey, Mignon du Preez, Georgia Elwiss, Danielle Hazell, Amy Jones, Marizanne Kapp, Rhys McKenna, Sasha Moloney, Gemma Triscari, and Elyse Villani – 1 WBBL Player of the Tournament: Meg Lanning – WBBL01 WBBL Team of the Tournament: Meg Lanning (4) – WBBL01, WBBL02, WBBL06, WBBL11 Sophie Day (2) – WBBL09, WBBL|11 Annabel Sutherland (2) – WBBL08, WBBL|09 Morna Nielsen – WBBL|01 Kristen Beams – WBBL|02 Alana King – WBBL|06 Nat Sciver-Brunt – WBBL|06 Kim Garth – WBBL|11 WBBL Young Gun Award: Tess Flintoff – WBBL08

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Melbourne Stars (WBBL)

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