On 17 July 1940, HMAS "Sydney" and the destroyer were ordered to support a Royal Navy destroyer squadron on a sweep north of the island of Crete. At 07.20 on 19 July, the Italian cruisers and , which opened fire seven minutes later. The four British destroyers retreated to the north-east, while "Sydney" and "Havock", away, began to close in. "Sydney" sighted the cruisers at 08.29, and fired the first shots of the Battle of Cape Spada at a range of . Within minutes, "Sydney" had successfully damaged "Bande Nere", and when the Italians withdrew to the south, the six Allied ships pursued. At 0848, with "Bande Nere" hiding behind a smoke screen, "Sydney" shifted her fire to "Bartolomeo Colleoni", which was disabled by 0933. The Australian cruiser left to pursue "Bande Nere", but broke off at 10.27 as the Italian warship was out of range, and "Sydney" was dangerously low on ammunition. The only damage to "Sydney" during the battle was caused by a shell at 09.21, which knocked a hole in the forward funnel, and wounded a sailor through splinter damage.