Sydney Sixers’ teenage all-rounder Caoimhe Bray has been ruled out of the remainder of the Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL) 11 season after scans confirmed the recurrence of a stress fracture in her back. The 16-year-old fast bowler, who has been one of the standout young talents in the ongoing 11th edition of the WBBL, will now face several months on the sidelines, also likely ruling her out of upcoming New South Wales fixtures.
Bray’s injury surfaced ahead of the Sixers’ WBBL Challenger match against Perth Scorchers at North Sydney Oval on December 11, forcing her to withdraw from what could have been a crucial fixture.
Despite the setback, the teenager’s stats in this WBBL edition have been impressive: she has scored 23 runs in five innings with a strike rate of 92 and taken 8 wickets at an average of 21.75 and economy rate of 6.96 across eight bowling innings. Highlighting her impact with the ball, Bray also secured a memorable four-wicket haul in nine matches for the Sixers.
This injury marks a painful recurrence of a back stress fracture that also sidelined Bray at the end of the previous season. The multi-sport athlete’s resilience has been commendable, given her demanding dual commitments to cricket and soccer, a path few manage with such promise.
Originally a goalkeeper for the Young Matildas in 2024, Bray transitioned to professional cricket with the Sixers just months later. She remarkably became the youngest player to take a hat-trick in any major women’s T20 league last month against Sydney Thunder, showcasing her cricketing prowess.
When asked about the challenge of juggling two sports, Bray commented last month, “If you don’t know the future, neither do I. I don’t know what it will be like in a few years. But I am going to try and stick to (doing both) as much as I can.” Despite the injury setback, her determination to pursue both cricket and soccer remains clear, embodying the spirit of Australian sports’ great dual-athletes like Ellyse Perry, to whom she is often compared.
The Sydney Sixers, led by skipper Ashleigh Gardner, finished 2nd on the points table with 13 points from 10 games, including 6 victories, 3 defeats and a washed-out game in the league stages. Their edge-of-seat thriller against the Adelaide Strikers, led by skipper Tahlia McGrath, the Sixers sealed the contest by 1 run to book their spot in the Challenger on 11th December 2025.
With the Sixers now having to navigate the critical stages of the WBBL without one of their brightest stars, the pressure mounts ahead of the Challenger match and the looming final against the Hobart Hurricanes at Bellerive Oval on Saturday.
Bray’s early-season performances have already marked her as one of the sport’s most exciting prospects, and fans and selectors alike will eagerly await her recovery and return to elite competition.
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