Sydney Thunder have signed England fast bowler Lauren Bell for the full Weber WBBL|12 season, returning the 25-year-old to the club for the first time since she made her Big Bash debut there in BBL|09.
Bell currently sits in the top five of the ICC World Rankings after taking seven wickets at the T20 World Cup, and has played 88 international matches across all formats for England.
The right-arm quick will line up alongside former England teammate Heather Knight, who remains with Thunder for the coming season.
"I love Sydney, I love the group and we've got some exciting new additions since I was last here so I can't wait to get going with the girls," Bell said in a statement released by the club.
Bell said the strength of the competition was part of the appeal of returning to Australia.
"The WBBL has the best talent in the world and as a cricketer that's how I believe I will get better is playing and challenging myself against the best in the world," she said.
She pointed to new teammates Phoebe Litchfield and Georgia Voll as players she was looking forward to sharing a dressing room with.
"I've obviously played against Phoebe many times and we seem to have pretty good battles but it will be nice to have her on my side now and watch her score runs," Bell said. "Volly is super fun and talented and I was lucky enough to play with her in India and I can't wait to do it again in Sydney."
Bell and Voll were teammates at Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the Women's Premier League, where Bell took 12 wickets in her debut season, including a spell in the final - alongside Thunder opener Georgia Voll - that conceded just 19 runs from four overs, a performance RCB captain Smriti Mandhana later described as a "match-winning spell".
Bell also topped the wicket-takers' list in last year's Hundred for Southern Brave, finishing with 19 wickets including best figures of 4-6 in a single match.
Sydney Thunder head coach Lisa Keightley said Bell's return gave the club access to a bowler in career-best form.
"Lauren is a world-class bowler and someone we're really excited to have back at the Thunder this season," Keightley said.
"We've seen what she can do at the highest level. She has the ability to take wickets with the new ball, but what really stands out is how she can impact a game at different stages of an innings."
Keightley said Bell, despite her experience, still had room to develop.
"She brings a lot of experience to our group, but she's also still only 25 and continuing to develop her game," Keightley said. "She works incredibly hard, is always looking to get better and will fit really well into the culture we're building."
Keightley added that having Bell for the entire tournament, rather than a partial release from England duties, was significant for Thunder's planning.
"To have Lauren available for the full season is a huge boost for us, and we believe she can play a really important role in what we want to achieve this year," she said.
Thunder's contracted WBBL|12 squad also includes Jemma Barsby, Sam Bates, Hannah Darlington, Lucy Finn, Hasrat Gill, Nicola Hancock, Laura Harris, Anika Learoyd, Phoebe Litchfield, Georgia Voll and Tahlia Wilson.
Thunder open their home campaign against Brisbane Heat at Drummoyne Oval on Sunday, November 1, at 3.40pm AEDT. They host Perth Scorchers on November 5, the Melbourne Stars on November 16 and the Sydney Sixers on November 28, all at the same venue.