Emma Hughes won't play for the Sydney Sixers this season

Hughes and Angela Reakes will both be available for the competition which begins on Thursday with the Sixers taking on the Brisbane Heat.

A Macquarie junior, Hughes injured her ACL while playing overseas during the Australian winter and underwent surgery in July to reconstruct her knee.

Head of Female Elite Cricket at Cricket NSW, Leah Poulton admitted the unavailable pair will still be around the squad this summer.

"Although we're disappointed to be without Ange (and Emma) on-field this summer, we know they'll both still be very much in the fold off-field," she said.

"It's disappointing for Emma and the club for her to miss this WBBL season, but she's making excellent progress with her rehabilitation and remains an integral part of our group."

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Reakes will miss the season after the birth of her first child Winnie alongside her partner Courtney.

It isn't all bad news for Hughes however, with the bowler recently resigning with the club to keep her at the Sixers until 2024.

WBBL|08 is Hughes' fourth season with the club, having played nine matches for the Sixers in that time.

The Dubbo native took her one and only wicket for the club in 2020, finishing with figures of 1/12 from two overs against the Adelaide Strikers.

Yet to make her debut for NSW, Hughes could return at the end of the 2022/23 season but it currently seems unlikely at the moment.

Hughes' absence means Orange's Pheobe Litchfield will be the only Western product in the WBBL this season, playing once again for the Sydney Thunder.

Litchfield is in some strong form after recently hitting a century for NSW.

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