Newcastle's Sam Bates will become the most capped Sydney Thunder player on Wednesday night when the WBBL defending champions play competition leaders Melbourne Renegades in Mackay.
The 29-year-old is a foundation Thunder player and is set to make a record 86th appearance for the club.
Bates surpasses Rachael Haynes' mark of 85 games. Haynes is having the season off after the birth of her son.
"It was a nice surprise to hear I'd played that many games," Bates said.
"I actually didn't realise I had. It's really great and it's an honour to be part of the Thunder for so long and, hopefully, I've got a few more to come."
There have been plenty of special moments in seven seasons of the Women's Big Bash League.
"There's a lot to be proud of about the Thunder nation, but I think the biggest thing is the growth of the club," Bates said.
"From 01 to 07 it's definitely skyrocketed and you can see the likes of Phoebe Litchfield and Kate Peters who are coming through the system and will be really successful for the club.
"We've also given back to a lot of the communities with Ozharvest and the indigenous rounds, which have come into play now, so it's really exciting to see where the club can go from here."
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The left-arm orthodox spin bowler could never have imagined how far the game has come in such a short space of time.
"I still have to pinch myself to think to myself that this is my career and I get paid to do something I love, especially from Big Bash 01 as a 22-year-old old kid walking out on the big stage to now where we're in front of crowds and we're on TV," Bates said.
"I'm just really grateful that I'm still here."
Thunder are seventh and moved to eight points after their third win of the season on Sunday in beating the Sydney Sixers in Mackay.
The pace-setting Renegades lead on 16 after seven wins and only two losses.
"They've done really well and they've used their internationals extremely well," Bates said.
"They've had nine days off, which can be good and bad in some ways, but I think our girls will be up for the challenge, especially after the win the other day."
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