Swing bowler Taneale Peschel has left Perth Scorchers and signed a two-year deal to play with Sydney Thunder from this summer.
The West Australian quick had played 73 games for the Scorchers since 2017 and was their most experienced frontline bowler last season.
Peschel will reunite with former WA coach Lisa Keightley at the Thunder, who have already signed ex-Brisbane Heat star Georgia Voll, but have lost South African great Marizanne Kapp.
It opens the door for teenage sensation Chloe Ainsworth to take the keys to the Scorchers’ attack this summer.
Peschel said the attraction of shifting to the east for the WBBL was about getting out of her comfort zone.
“At the Scorchers, I’ve been given utmost every opportunity, but I felt like I’d been stagnant for the last season or two,” she said.
“I always play the safe card and I’ve always stayed in WA and thought, okay, I’m still getting opportunity, I’ll stay here. I think just this year, something clicked.
“I thought, I’ve got to try something else. I’ve got to stop playing a safe card. Who knows what something like a change to another team can offer my career.”
The Scorchers have already bolstered their middle-order stocks with the recruitment of Heat batter Mikayla Hinkley this off-season.