Big Bash League

The Big Bash League is an Australian T20 cricket league, controlled and inaugurated by Cricket Australia. It was started back in 2011 as an alternative to the previous KFC T20 Big Bash.

The BBL is sponsored by the fast-food chicken outlet KFC since its inauguration and is that’s why also known as KFC Big Bash League. It has eight different city-based teams participating in it, instead of the previous 6 state-based teams.

Sydney Sixers and Perth Scorchers are the most successful teams in the Big Bash. They have appeared most of the time in the final having won the most number of Big Bash titles. Perth Scorchers are the current champions of the BBL 2021/2022 season. They defeated their arch-rivals Sydney Sixers by 79 runs.

The upcoming cricket season, known as BBL|13 or the 2023–24 Big Bash League, sponsored by KFC, marks the thirteenth edition of Australia’s premier professional men’s Twenty20 domestic cricket competition. The tournament is set to commence on December 7, 2023, and conclude on January 24, 2024.

1. Big Bash League
2. The History of BBL
3. Women’s Big Bash League
4. BBL Current Teams
5. BBL Rules
6. New BBL Rules in 2022
7. BBL 2021-2022 Results
8. BBL 2023-2024
9. BBL 2023-2024 Schedule

The History of BBL

Though Big Bash League is an Australian T20 league, it is played during the summer season in Australia which is from December to February. Eight city-based teams participate in this league and 6 out of these have already won their maiden BBL trophy. The BBL winner list most often includes Perth Scorchers. Perth Scorchers are the most successful team of the tournament, having won the title 4 times with Sydney Sixers following being a 3 times trophy winner.

Many exciting matches have been played in the BBL history but these two rivals can be seen competing with each other on the Big Bash Cricket platform more often. And the clash between the two is a treat to watch, as none of them is less strong than the other. The other 4 teams with single Big Bash titles are Adelaide Strikers, Brisbane Heat, Sydney Thunder and Melbourne Renegades.

Also, before 2014, the top teams from the BBL used to qualify for the Champions League T20 an annual international competition played among the top domestic teams from all over the world. However, the Champions League T20 became defunct after 2014. Because of this, BBL vs IPL is one of the most controversial for cricket fans around the world.

Women’s Big Bash League

Due to the BBL’s rise in television ratings in 2014 and popularity of the women’s cricket, cricket Australia started considering the formation of the Women’s Big Bash League. And this idea became a reality soon in 2015 when KFC Big Bash League for Women started.

It had the same teams, representing the same cities and sharing the same names alongside the men’s teams. That means WBBL has 2 teams from Sydney and Melbourne and one from Adelaide, Perth, Brisbane and Hobart each.

The first season of the Women’s Big Bash League was won by the Sydney Thunder against the opponent Sydney Sixers by 3 wickets. While the all-time favorite Perth Scorchers are the current champions of the WBBL season 7. They defeated Adelaide Strikers by 12 runs.

BBL Current Teams

Currently, 8 teams participate in the BBL league every year. These eight city-based teams were formed during the inaugural season of the tournament with each team representing the capital of each state. However, Sydney and Melbourne have two teams. And that’s how the number turns eight.

Also, the Melbourne Derby and Sydney Derby matches are the most popular among all. And they attract a massive crowd as compared to the others. Alongside that, Sydney Sixers and Perth Scorchers have developed a very famous rivalry and their clash attract a huge crowd with more television ratings. Also, the Sixers and Scorchers are the strongest teams among all, having won the BBL title many times.

Each team is allowed to have at least 19 players with 2 rookie contracts and six overseas players. However, only 3 overseas players can play in the league. And a team needs to keep two optional foreign players on the side, just in case the original one gets injured or withdraws. BBL players’ salaries are lower than those of IPL players, however, the teams still play for world cricket stars.

BBL Rules

There have been multiple trimmings in the BBL rules, here and there to make the game worth your time. However, the format for the league stayed somewhat similar throughout the years except for its inaugural season which had 28 group stage matches which later expanded to 32.

Also, earlier each team played group stage matches in 8 rounds. Four rounds home and four away with each round having 4 matches. And each team was supposed to play the other six once and one remaining team twice. This gives the opportunity to Melbourne and Sydney to play 2 derbies in a single season. And then eventually, the top 4 teams progressed to the semi-finals.

However, now since the 2018 edition, each team play the other teams twice, having played 14 initial games before the knockout stage. Or you can say, now there are a total of 56 regular matches before the semi-finals.

And this new league structure is played over the same time as in the past with the old format. That is why, there are more doubleheaders, resulting in teams playing more regularly.

It’s a rule that the final of the tournament is played on the home ground of the team with the highest points. And this never changed, except for one season in the 2014/2015 BBL edition where the final was played in a neutral zone, Manuka Oval. This change happened due to the 2015 Cricket World Cup.

In the 2018/2019 season, the bat flip was introduced to replace the coin toss. And then in the 2019/2020 edition, a new change was made in the final of the league with the introduction of 5 teams instead of the four. This was a hybrid version with the addition of the ‘The Eliminator’ round.

New BBL Rules in 2022

During the 11th season of the BBL league, three new rules are being introduced into the game. The authorities introduced these for the sole purpose of fun and to make it a little more challenging for the players. These further will ensure that strategic thinking gets rewarded. Let’s discuss the rules briefly.

Timed-Out Rules in BBL

The very interesting Big Bash League new rule is the time-out rule. According to this rule, the batsman needs to be at his crease within 60 seconds ready to face the bowler again. However, if he fails to do so, he must stand aside and give the bowler a free delivery. Following that, if the balls hit the stumps, it’s an out.

The ruling and timing are still under consideration. But, everyone agrees that the game needs to speed up.

Power Surge Rule in BBL

This new BBL rule is kind of a usual powerplay played at the beginning of an innings, with some new trimmings. A batting side can call for the Power Surge at any time from the 11th over onwards. And following the Power Surge, the fielding team will only be allowed to keep 2 players outside 30 yards of the fielding circle and 9 players inside that circle. Though it prolongs the scoring time for the batting side, bowlers are also taking more wickets, which seems to balance the case.

More, the initial powerplay at the start of an innings has been reduced to the 4 overs.

X-Factor Player Rule in BBL

According to this new BBL rule, teams are allowed to take two extra players other than their playing XI. And after the 10th over of the first innings, they can introduce either of them in the game as a substitute. But, not both of them.

The conditions for introducing your player are, that he must not have batted first and he must not have bowled more than one over. If he complies with the rules and conditions, he can bowl 4 overs and mark his name in the batting lineup.

Bash Boost in BBL

Bash Boost is a bonus point given to the team with the highest total at the end of the tenth over in the second innings. So, each team gets to play 20 overs in a BBL match. And one with the highest score after its 10 overs will get this Bash Boost bonus.

BBL 2021-2022 Results

Perth Scorchers turned out to be the winners of the BBL 2021-2022 league. Sixers after winning the toss decided to bowl first. They took 6 wickets in 20 overs with Steve O’Keefe and Nathon Layon scoring 2 wickets each. While Scorchers’ Laurie Evan was Man of the Match with 76* off 41 deliveries. And their skipper Ashton Turner hit 54 in 35 balls, helping the team name title to themselves.

BBL 2023-2024

The upcoming season of the Big Bash League (BBL), known as BBL|13 or the KFC Big Bash League 2023 due to sponsorship, is set to be the thirteenth installment of the professional men’s Twenty20 domestic cricket competition in Australia. The event is slated to run from December 7, 2023, to January 24, 2024.

BBL 2023-2024 Teams

BBL 2023-2024 Squads

BBL 2023-2024 Schedule