An unfortunate feline mishap sidelined Rachael Haynes for her team’s loss to Perth Scorchers last Sunday, but the Sydney Thunder skipper is set to make her return for tonight’s return clash at the WACA Ground.
Haynes was ruled out of the match, at Adelaide’s Karen Rolton Oval, due to a foot infection.
The cause of the injury was later revealed to be her cat, Lily, with Haynes inadvertently bitten on the foot while trying to break up a fight between her pet and a stray.
RelatedPosts
“I had no idea what had happened and then I heard it was her cat, so I was a little bit intrigued,” Thunder bowler Hannah Darlington told.
Star of @theblast_fox show 4? @RachaelHaynes cat Lily who has sidelined the skipper for a round in a cat standoff that went horribly wrong. Plus the insights of @JJonassen21 & Erin Burns on all things @WBBL. #WBBL05 pic.twitter.com/DwWajpUiMI
— Mel 'MJ' Jones (@meljones_33) November 10, 2019
“It’s just something you’d never expect to happen to Rach, so it is quite funny.”
Haynes isn’t the first player to be sidelined after a mishap with a pet; in 2018, D’Arcy Short required stitches after being accidentally bitten while playing with his dog.
Haynes missed a close seven-run defeat against the Scorchers after the Thunder had missed a goal of 152 despite a spirited 47-year-old who had failed on the debut, not by Tahlia Wilson.
Their return will strengthen a team eager to turn the tables on their Western rivals, with the Thunder in second place in the middle of the regular season.
“Rach received an all-clear from the doctor and she’s flying from Sydney to us this afternoon,” said Thunder coach Trevor Griffin.
“She will have a goal this afternoon and everything is going well, she will stand on the side again tomorrow to face the scorchers.
“Rach has been a great leader so far this season, and once we get them back, we can focus on how we want to play.” As Haynes returns, the thunder will do without the prodigy Phoebe Litchfield, who is just finishing her 10th-grade exams.
In the meantime, the Scorchers have made a change to their squad for the game on Tuesday, with Amy Edgar coming on for Piepa Cleary, who has undergone surgery after a leg fracture from a stroke.
The WACA game starts at 17:30 local time (20:30 AEDT) and can be viewed live and free on cricket.com.au, the CA Live App or the WBBL Facebook
