The rescheduled Yarra Valley Cup has led to a shift in plans for the Emma-Lee and David Browne-trained Basilinna.

The Yarra Valley Cup was originally set for 1950m last Sunday but was abandoned after one race due to rain and worsening track conditions.

To keep the race on the calendar, it was reclassified as a benchmark 100 event and is now part of an 11-race card at Moonee Valley on Saturday.

Basilinna had already been entered in two other Saturday races – a benchmark 84 over 1500m and the Group 2 Sunline Stakes (1600m) – before the Yarra Valley Cup was added to the schedule.

The Brownes initially planned to begin Basilinna’s campaign in the Sunline Stakes but opted for the Yarra Valley Cup despite the increased distance.

“I don’t know if she is a winning chance first-up, but so long as she’s hitting the line and showing that she still wants to be involved, that will please us,” Emma-Lee Browne said.

In the 2023 spring carnival, Basilinna gave the Brownes a thrilling ride, placing third in both the Ethereal Stakes (2000m) at Caulfield and the VRC Oaks (2500m) at Flemington.

That autumn, she came close to victory when finishing second-up in the Kewney Stakes (1600m) at Flemington, her standout performance of four starts.

Last spring, expectations were high, with her best result being a third-place finish in the Pinker Pinker Plate (2025m) at Cranbourne from five runs.

“We went back to the drawing board a little bit with her after the spring,” Browne said.

“We had been hoping she would come up like she had in the autumn last year and in the spring as a three-year-old, but just a few things weren’t quite right with her.

“It was probably more mental than anything else, so we gave her a good break and we’re hoping she’s back and her behaviour at The Valley on Tuesday morning was impeccable.

“We’ve got no plans for her after Saturday.

“She’s already taken us on an amazing ride, so hopefully we can enhance her pedigree.”