Heat lock in South African duo for WBBL|07

The Brisbane Heat will have a strong South African flavour this WBBL season after the club confirmed the signings of Proteas pair Nadine de Klerk and Anneke Bosch.

De Klerk will return after debuting for the Heat last summer while Bosch, who has been capped 14 times by her country, will play in the Big Bash for the first time.

An allrounder from South Africa's Eastern Cape, Bosch was one of the leading players for the Proteas on their tour of India earlier this year, winning the player-of-the-match award twice.

A right-handed batter and right-arm medium pacer, she will help offset the retirement of World Cup winner Delissa Kimmince, who called time on her career in April.

De Klerk, 21, played nine games for the Heat last season having followed countrywomen Laura Wolvaardt and Sune Luus in playing for the Brisbane club.

"We were really impressed with Nadine and how she adapted and improved across the tournament, which was played in some pretty challenging conditions due to the strict bio-security regime we all had to follow," Heat coach Ashley Noffke said in a statement.

"She's ultra-competitive and gives us another player who likes to get in and get the job done. She bowled well last season and did some unselfish work with the bat when it was needed.

"Anneke impressed us with her composure as well as her ability. In all our dealings with her, and the scouting we did before signing her, her strengths are that she is a talented individual who also works hard to enhance the other players around her.

"With Delissa Kimmince retiring, it will be great to have another experienced player in the group who can contribute on and off the field for the club."

The Heat won back-to-back titles in 2018-19 and 2019-20 before key players Beth Mooney, Sammy-Jo Johnson and Kirby Short all departed the club last year.

Despite the change in personnel, the Heat finished second last summer before losing in the semi-finals to the Sydney Thunder, the eventual champions.

Last season saw the emergence of Laura Kimmince and Georgia Redmayne as genuine stars of the competition, with the latter recently earning a call-up to Australia's squad to take on India next month.

The schedule for WBBL|07, which was announced in July, sees the tournament begin in Sydney on October 14 and running until November 27.

However, that schedule is subject to change given current COVID-19 lockdowns and subsequent border restrictions.

Brisbane Heat squad for WBBL|07 (so far): Jess Jonassen (c), Anneke Bosch (SA), Nadine de Klerk (SA), Grace Harris, Laura Kimmince, Mikayla Hinkley, Charli Knott, Georgia Prestwidge, Georgia Redmayne, Georgia Voll