WBBL club Sydney Sixers back star as captain amid claims

The Sydney Sixers have thrown their full support behind captain Ash Gardner, confirming she will remain skipper for the upcoming WBBL season despite recent allegations surrounding her personal life.

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Gardner’s ex-wife, Monica Wright, earlier this month publicly alleged on social media that the Australian all-rounder and teammate Georgia Voll were involved in an affair during last year’s Women’s World Cup in India.

Despite the allegations, Sixers general manager Rachael Haynes made it clear the club has no concerns over Gardner’s leadership and expects her to continue as captain after taking over from Ellyse Perry last season.

“I’m not going to comment on her personal life, or anything like that,” Haynes said.

“But certainly we’ve exchanged messages.

“I’ve checked in with her; she knows that we’re here to support her.

“She’s a well-respected player within our program, an important player for us, so I think the most important thing is knowing that we’re there for her, we care about her and look forward to continuing with the club ongoing.

“Absolutely (as captain). Each year we make a recommendation to our board around our leaders. She certainly did a fantastic job last year, and we’ll be making that recommendation to our board that she continues.”

Gardner and Wright married in 2025 before separating just months later. Wright has alleged the affair took place during the 2025 Women’s World Cup in India.

Away from the captaincy decision, Haynes also confirmed Peter Clarke will take over as Sydney Sixers WBBL coach following Matthew Mott’s move to lead the club’s BBL side.

“I think to have someone like Matthew Mott stepping into our men’s head coach role, Pete Clarke who was announced earlier today, very excited with where we’ve ended up,” Haynes said.

“It’s been a little bit of a journey to get here, but I think we’ve got two world-class coaches stepping in to lead our programs.”

Clarke is no stranger to the Sixers, having served as an assistant coach under Mott during WBBL 11 while also spending eight years as psychologist with the Australian women’s team.

James Hopes had originally been appointed to coach the Sixers’ BBL side before leaving to coach Queensland and the Brisbane Heat, prompting the club to elevate Mott to the men’s program and create an opportunity for Clarke.

“With the potential for the BBL and WBBL windows to shift each season, we have appointed separate head coaches for each team to ensure continuity and long-term stability across both programs,” Haynes said.

“While we considered Matthew’s ability to lead both programs, we’ve taken a long-term view to ensure consistent and stable leadership across both teams.”

Attention has also turned to replacing retired wicketkeeper Alyssa Healy as the Sixers prepare for a season they expect will be played without a draft.

“We’ve certainly been chatting to various players, but once we have certainty around the contracting framework and what we can and can’t commit to, then we’ll move pretty quickly on that,” Haynes said.

“With the timelines, it feels like there’s not going to be a draft this year; that’s the assumption we’re working off.

“I was chatting to Alyssa yesterday, and she’s still completely engaged in the club.

“It is a priority to make sure we’ve got gloves behind the stumps... so we’ve been chatting to a couple of players, and it’ll be high on our list when that embargo lifts.”

The Sixers lost just one match during last season’s home-and-away campaign before falling to Queensland by seven runs in a rain-affected WBBL final, with Haynes confident the club will again contend for the title.

“I have every confidence that Pete and Matthew are the right leaders for our respective programs, and that they will give us every opportunity to contend for a third WBBL and fourth BBL championship.”

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