Big Bash League

"Big Bash" redirects here. For the competition run from 2005 to 2011, see KFC Twenty20 Big Bash.
For the most recent season of the tournament, see 2015–16 Big Bash League season.
Big Bash League
(BBL)

Official BBL Logo
Countries Australia Australia
Administrator Cricket Australia
Format Twenty20
First tournament 2011–12
Last tournament 2015–16
Next tournament 2016–17
Tournament format Round-robin and knockout finals
Number of teams 8
Current champion Sydney Thunder (1st title)
Most successful Perth Scorchers
(2 titles)
Qualification No
Most runs Michael Klinger (1,274)[1]
Most wickets Ben Laughlin (60)[2]
TV Network Ten
Website bigbash.com.au

The Big Bash League (BBL, also known as the KFC Big Bash League for sponsorship reasons) is an Australian professional Twenty20 cricket league, which was established in 2011 by Cricket Australia. The Big Bash League replaced the previous competition, the KFC Twenty20 Big Bash, and features eight city-based franchises instead of the six state teams which had participated previously. The competition has been sponsored by fast food chicken outlet KFC since its inception.

BBL matches are played in Australia during the summer in the months of December and January. It is now placed eighth in the list of most attended sports leagues in the world with respect to average crowd per match (2015–16 season).[3][4]

Out of the eight teams in the tournament, four have won the title at least once. The Perth Scorchers are the most successful team in the league's short history, winning the title consecutively for two years and have reached the final of the tournament in four of the five seasons. The other three teams which have won the title are Sydney Sixers, Brisbane Heat and Sydney Thunder. The current champions are the Sydney Thunder.

Earlier, the top two teams in the tournament used to qualify for the Champions League Twenty20 tournament. It was an annual international Twenty20 competition played between the top domestic teams from various nations. However, the CLT20 has now become defunct from 2015 onwards.[5]

History

Trophy

A design contest was held in 2011 to determine the design of the Big Bash League trophy. The competition was restricted to Australian designers, with the final design, chosen by the public from a field of three, revealed on 13 December 2011.[6][7]

Expansion proposal

Perth Scorchers taking on Hobart Hurricanes at #TheFurnace in 2011

It had been proposed that the tournament would undergo expansion into more regional areas not supported by international cricket. The expansion was planned to be implemented in 2012. The proposed teams included: Newcastle, Canberra, Geelong, and Gold Coast. A New Zealand-based team was also mentioned as a possibility which would be based at Auckland or Christchurch.[8][9] Cricket expert Mark Waugh commented on Fox Sports that an expansion could dilute the player pool resulting in a sub-standard league. The expansion proposal was eventually dumped, mainly because the proposed cities lacked the proper cricket hosting facilities.[10][11]

Shane Warne bowling against Sydney Sixers in 2011 at the SCG

In 2015, former Black Caps captain and Melbourne Stars coach Stephen Fleming suggested expansion of the tournament to include New Zealand teams and become a trans-Tasman competition. He said an expansion into New Zealand would be widely supported by locals.[12] His views were also supported by Brisbane Heat coach and former Black Caps captain Daniel Vettori.[13] Melbourne Renegades chief executive Stuart Coventry also stated that he wants Cricket Australia to grant each club a fifth home fixture next season. Coventry said the BBL was ready to expand from 8 to 10 games, and adding matches would further establish the franchises.[14]

In 2016, Anthony Everard, head of the BBL, flagged the league's intentions to approach expansion through a soft launch. He stated the short to medium term goal was to schedule BBL games involving existing franchises in regional markets before likely adding new teams after the 2017/18 season when the current broadcast deal expires. He also indicated the regional markets of Canberra, Geelong and Gold Coast will likely host games during the soft launch period.[15]

Women's Big Bash League

Former women's Test captain and Head of Brisbane's Centre of Excellence, Belinda Clark, revealed on 19 January 2014 that planning for a women's BBL was in its early stages but could become a reality very soon. She stated that the proposal was being considered due to the huge rise in television ratings in the BBL 03 season and the rise in women's cricket popularity.[16]

On 19 February 2015, Cricket Australia announced that a Women's Big Bash League (WBBL) would commence in the 2015–16 season, with teams aligned to the men's competition. It was announced that the teams would share the names and colours of the existing men's BBL teams, meaning that there would be two teams from Sydney and Melbourne and one team from Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide and Hobart.[17]

Christmas Day match

In December 2015, Cricket Australia revealed that they are looking into the possibility of hosting a Christmas Day BBL match in the coming years, possibly after the next season. If the proposal is passed, it would be a first in the history of Australian sport since no professional matches are played in Australia on Christmas Day. "It is something we have just recently started discussing, the possibilities of that. We're talking about playing a Christmas Eve match, we already play Boxing Day," CA's Executive GM (Operations) Mike McKenna said.[18]

Tournament format

Ben Cutting of Brisbane Heat batting against Melbourne Stars in 2014

Since the inception of the BBL in 2011, the tournament has followed the same format every year except the inaugural season.[19] The first BBL season had 28 group stage matches, before expanding to 32 in the following season.[15]

Currently in the eight team format, each team plays every other team at least once during a season. However, each team is also assigned a particular "rival" with which they play for the second time in the same season. The assigned 'rival' for a team does not change generally in different seasons. Cross-town teams such as Melbourne Renegades and Melbourne Stars have been assigned as "rivals" to each other. This allows BBL to have 2 Melbourne derbies as well as 2 Sydney derbies within a single season.[20]

The group stage matches are divided into 8 rounds, with 4 matches played in each round. Each team plays 8 group stage matches, four at home and four away, before the top 4 ranked teams progress to the Semi Finals. The Final of the tournament is played at the home ground of the highest-ranked team. The only exception to this rule was 2014–15 season when the final was played at a neutral venue (Manuka Oval).[19][21]

Thus, the total number of matches during a season tally up to 35, with 32 group stage matches and 3 knock out matches.[20]

Current teams

The competition features eight city-based franchises, instead of the six state-based teams which had previously competed in the KFC Twenty20 Big Bash. Each state's capital city features one team, with Sydney and Melbourne featuring two. The team names and colours for all teams were officially announced on 6 April 2011.[22] The Melbourne Derby and Sydney Derby matches are some of the most heavily attended matches during the league and are widely anticipated by the fans.[23] The Scorchers and Sixers have also developed a rivalry between them over the years and their matches attract good crowds and TV ratings.[24]

As of now, a single city-based franchise can have a maximum of 18 contracted players for a season. Each team should have a minimum of two rookie contracts and a maximum of two overseas players in the squad. Each team can also have a maximum of two overseas replacement players, in case the original overseas players get injured or withdraw due to particular reason.[25]

Location of Big Bash League teams
Team City State Home ground Coach Captain Foreign players
Adelaide Strikers Adelaide South Australia South Australia Adelaide Oval Australia Jason Gillespie Australia Brad Hodge Trinidad and Tobago Kieron Pollard
England Adil Rashid
Brisbane Heat Brisbane Queensland Queensland Brisbane Cricket Ground New Zealand Daniel Vettori Australia Chris Lynn New Zealand Brendon McCullum
Trinidad and Tobago Samuel Badree
Hobart Hurricanes Hobart Tasmania Tasmania Blundstone Arena Australia Damien Wright Australia Tim Paine Sri Lanka Kumar Sangakkara
Melbourne Renegades Melbourne Victoria (Australia) Victoria Etihad Stadium Australia Andrew McDonald Australia Aaron Finch Trinidad and Tobago Dwayne Bravo
Melbourne Stars Melbourne Victoria (Australia) Victoria Melbourne Cricket Ground New Zealand Stephen Fleming Australia David Hussey England Luke Wright
England Kevin Pietersen
Perth Scorchers Perth Western Australia Western Australia #TheFurnace Australia Justin Langer Australia Adam Voges England David Willey
England Ian Bell
Sydney Sixers Sydney New South Wales New South Wales Sydney Cricket Ground Australia Greg Shipperd Australia Moises Henriques South Africa Johan Botha
Sydney Thunder Sydney New South Wales New South Wales Spotless Stadium South Africa Paddy Upton Australia Shane Watson Jamaica Andre Russell

Tournament results

Out of the eight teams in the tournament, four have won the title at least once. The Perth Scorchers are the most successful team in the league's history, winning the title consecutively for two seasons in 2013–14 and 2014–15.[26] They also hold the record for reaching the final of the tournament in the first four consecutive seasons, with only one other team reaching the final twice.[27] The other three teams which have won the title are the Sydney Sixers in the inaugural season (2011–12), the Brisbane Heat in the second season (2012–13) and the Sydney Thunder in 2015-16.[28][29]

The WACA Ground has hosted the final on three occasions, more than any other venue. In fact, the final of the 2014–15 BBL season would have also been hosted by WACA Ground if it was awarded to the home ground of the highest-ranked team, as in previous seasons. However, Manuka Oval was awarded the rights to host the final of 2014–15 BBL season as a neutral venue.[21]

Season Final Final host Final venue
Winner Result Runner-up
2011–12
Details		 Sydney Sixers
158/3 (18.5 overs)		 Sixers won by 7 wickets
Scorecard		 Perth Scorchers
156/5 (20 overs)		 Perth Scorchers WACA Ground
2012–13
Details		 Brisbane Heat
167/5 (20 overs)		 Heat won by 34 runs
Scorecard		 Perth Scorchers
133/9 (20 overs)		 Perth Scorchers WACA Ground
2013–14
Details		 Perth Scorchers
191/4 (20 overs)		 Scorchers won by 39 runs
Scorecard		 Hobart Hurricanes
152/7 (20 overs)		 Perth Scorchers WACA Ground
2014–15
Details		 Perth Scorchers
148/6 (20 overs)		 Scorchers won by 4 wickets
Scorecard		 Sydney Sixers
147/5 (20 overs)		 Neutral Venue Manuka Oval
2015–16
Details		 Sydney Thunder
181/7 (19.3 overs)		 Thunder won by 3 wickets
Scorecard		 Melbourne Stars
176/9 (20 overs)		 Melbourne Stars MCG

Team performances

Team 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16
Adelaide Strikers 6th 5th 7th SF (1st) SF (1st)
Brisbane Heat 5th W (4th) 5th 8th 6th
Hobart Hurricanes SF (2nd) 6th R (4th) 5th 7th
Melbourne Renegades 7th SF (1st) 6th 6th 5th
Melbourne Stars SF (4th) SF (3rd) SF (1st) SF (3rd) R (2nd)
Perth Scorchers R (1st) R (2nd) W (3rd) W (2nd) SF (3rd)
Sydney Sixers W (3rd) 7th SF (2nd) R (4th) 8th
Sydney Thunder 8th 8th 8th 7th W (4th)

Notes:

Salary cap and Contracting Period

BBL old logo used up to 2014–15 season

The Big Bash League's salary cap was $1.05 million for the third season, a $50,000 increase from the two previous seasons,[30] which were played under a salary cap of $1 million.[31][32][33][34][35] In February 2015, BBL salary cap increased to $1.30 million for the fifth season of BBL.[25]

Currently, the salary cap has increased to $1.40 million, an increase of $100,000 compared to previous season. Under the $1.40 million salary cap, a team can sign a total of 18 contracted players consisting of a minimum of 2 rookie contracts and maximum of 2 overseas players. In addition, 2 overseas replacement players can also be signed by a team.[36]

Contracting Details (per team)
Retainer Pool Amount (excluding superannuation) $1.40 million
Number of Contracts 18
Number of Rookie Contracts 2
Maximum Overseas Players in squad of 18 2
Maximum Replacement Overseas Players 2

Key dates

The key dates for the sixth season during the contracting period are as follows.[36]

Prize money

Cricket Australia increased the prize money for the BBL to a total of $890,000 for the four finalists from 2015–16 season, after the Champions League Twenty20 tournament was discontinued with effect from 2015. The prize money will be split between the teams as follows:[37]

However, the additional cash increase of $600,000 will go to successful clubs and not their players. Up to the 2014–15 BBL season, a total prize money of $290,000 was awarded.[37]

Audience

Attendance

Melbourne Stars vs Hobart Hurricanes at the MCG on 6 January 2016

Average home crowds for the regular season are listed below. These figures do not include finals matches. While the figures for whole season average includes the average throughout the tournament including the finals.[38][39] Post-Christmas matches have historically been the highest attended period for the League.[40]

The 2014–15 season saw record domestic cricket crowds in the states of South Australia, New South Wales, Tasmania and the ACT, including a record attendance of 52,633 at the Adelaide Strikers' home semi-final, which was then the biggest ever crowd at the redeveloped Adelaide Oval.[40]

In 2015–16 season too, the attendance figures continued to be broken across all the venues. Perth Scorchers became the first ever BBL team to sell out all of its home matches in a season.[41] On 2 January 2016, the BBL single match attendance record was surpassed, with a crowd of 80,883 watching the first of two Melbourne derbies between the Melbourne Stars and the Melbourne Renegades at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. The Big Bash League also entered into the top 10 most attended sports leagues in the world with respect to average crowd per match in this season.[3]

Team Crowd average
2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16
Adelaide Strikers 21,986 13,319 23,703 36,023 42,437
Brisbane Heat 17,072 15,897 23,685 24,611 29,353
Hobart Hurricanes 10,517 12,107 9,552 13,776 16,640
Melbourne Renegades 13,324 13,184 21,929 22,324 29,010
Melbourne Stars 27,424 21,451 21,813 27,698 40,986
Perth Scorchers 14,905 11,539 17,380 18,825 20,273
Sydney Sixers 20,068 13,286 19,914 23,849 27,956
Sydney Thunder 18,423 10,278 14,866 17,938 19,333
Finals 15,222 17,568 15,286 27,920 42,182
Whole season 18,021 14,883 18,778 23,590 29,443

Television

Australian television

BBL games are currently broadcast in Australia by the free-to-air Network Ten. In 2013 Ten paid $100 million for BBL rights over five years, marking the channel's first foray in elite cricket coverage.[42] Fox Sports had previously covered the T20 Big Bash League.

Network Ten's BBL coverage has become a regular feature of Australian summers and attracted an average audience of more than 943,000 people nationally in 2014–15 season, including a peak audience of 1.9 million viewers for the final between the Scorchers and Sixers.[43]

The 2015–16 season attracted an average audience of 1.13 million for each match in Australia this season, an 18% increase on the previous season. A cumulative audience of 9.65 million watched the matches in Australia, out of which 39% where females.[44][45] The opening Sydney Derby match of the season attracted a peak audience of 1.53 million.[46] The last group match between Renegades and Strikers in Session 2 was watched by an average audience of 1.36 million, which peaked at 1.67 million.[47] The BBL Final was watched by an average audience of 1.79 million, which peaked at 2.24 million viewers. This was the first time that the ratings for a BBL match crossed the 2 million mark.[48]

Broadcast partners

Territory Network
Australia Australia Network Ten (2013–present)
Fox Sports (2011–13)
New Zealand New Zealand Sky Sport
Bangladesh Bangladesh STAR Sports
Pakistan Pakistan PTV Sports
South Africa South Africa SuperSport
India India STAR Sports
Sri Lanka Sri Lanka STAR Sports
United Kingdom United Kingdom Sky Sports
United States United States Willow
NBCSN (from 2016–17)

Grounds

A total of 10 grounds have been used to host BBL matches till date. Sydney Thunder moved out of ANZ Stadium after 2014–15 season and relocated to Spotless Stadium for the next 10 years. The Final of the tournament is played at the home ground of the highest-ranked team. #TheFurnace has hosted the final three times, more than any other venue. Manuka Oval hosted the final of 2014–15 BBL season as a neutral venue primarily because other major grounds were being prepared for the 2015 Cricket World Cup.[21]

Perth Stadium will replace #TheFurnace as the home ground of Perth Scorchers starting from 2018–19. Main reasons behind the move are poor facilities at the ground as well as low spectator capacity.[49]

Panoramic view of the SCG during a Big Bash League match in 2011. It is the home ground of Sydney Sixers.
Name of the stadium Capacity City Home team
Current Grounds
Adelaide Oval 53,583 Adelaide Adelaide Strikers
Blundstone Arena 19,500 Hobart Hobart Hurricanes
Etihad Stadium 53,359 Melbourne Melbourne Renegades
WACA Ground 20,000 Perth Perth Scorchers
The Gabba 42,000 Brisbane Brisbane Heat
Melbourne Cricket Ground 100,024 Melbourne Melbourne Stars
Spotless Stadium 22,000 Sydney Sydney Thunder
Sydney Cricket Ground 48,000 Sydney Sydney Sixers
Proposed Grounds
Perth Stadium 60,000 Perth Perth Scorchers
Former Grounds
ANZ Stadium 82,000 Sydney Sydney Thunder (2011–2015)
Manuka Oval 12,000 Canberra Neutral Venue (BBL 04 Final)

Records and statistics

Michael Klinger, the leading run-scorer in BBL history

Here is a list of Big Bash League records. All records are based on statistics at espncricinfo.com.[50] Melbourne Renegades captain and opening batsman Michael Klinger currently holds the record of scoring most runs in the league. He has played 41 matches in the BBL so far, starting from 2011.[1] The record of taking most wickets in the league belongs to Ben Laughlin, who currently plays for Adelaide Strikers. He has represented Hobart Hurricanes in the past, and has played a total of 43 BBL matches since 2011.[2]

Batting Records
Most runs      Michael Klinger 1,274
Highest average      Peter Handscomb 79.33
Highest score      Luke Wright 117 vs Hobart Hurricanes (9 January 2012)
Highest partnership      Rob Quiney & Luke Wright 172 vs Hobart Hurricanes (9 January 2012)
Most sixes      Chris Lynn 60
Bowling Records
Most wickets      Ben Laughlin 60
Lowest average      Lasith Malinga 15.00
Best strike rate      Cameron Gannon 12.4
Best economy rate      Lasith Malinga 5.40
Best bowling figures      Lasith Malinga 6/7 vs Perth Scorchers (12 December 2012)
Fielding
Most dismissals (wicket-keeper)      Ryan Carters 29
Most catches (fielder)      Adam Voges 20
Team Records
Highest total      Hobart Hurricanes 210-7 (19.2) vs Brisbane Heat (28 December 2013)
Lowest total      Melbourne Renegades 57 (12.4) vs Melbourne Stars (3 January 2015)

Last updated on 24 January 2016

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Big Bash League / Records / Most runs – ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 28 January 2015.
  2. 1 2 Big Bash League / Records / Most wickets – ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 28 January 2015.
  3. 1 2 Big Bash League jumps into top 10 of most attended sports leagues in the world smh.com.au. Retrieved on 12 January 2016
  4. ↑ Big Bash world's 9th most attended league: Report Press Trust of India (PTI). Retrieved on 12 January 2016
  5. ↑ "Champions League T20 discontinued". ESPN. 15 July 2015. Retrieved 15 July 2015.
  6. ↑ "KFC T20 Big Bash League – Top three trophies as chosen by you". Bigbash.com.au.
  7. ↑ "KFC T20 Big Bash League – The trophy has been revealed". Bigbash.com.au.
  8. ↑ Cricket Australia considering Big Bash expansion. Retrieved 17 January 2012
  9. ↑ Cricket Australia looks at expanding KFC T20 Big Bash League on back of incredible ratings and crowd figures. Retrieved 17 January 2012
  10. ↑ "Articles from January 27, 2012". Sports News First. 27 January 2012.
  11. ↑ Kerry, Craig (12 January 2012). "Newcastle lacking for big bash". Newcastle Herald.
  12. ↑ Expand the Big Bash League to New Zealand, says Stephen Fleming smh.com.au. Retrieved on 4 December 2015
  13. ↑ NEW ZEALAND COULD FIELD BBL TEAM: VETTORI bigbash.com.au. Retrieved on 25 December 2015
  14. ↑ Big Bash: Melbourne Renegades boss wants more games next season perthnow.com.au. Retrieved on 22 December 2015
  15. 1 2 BIG BASH MAY HEAD TO REGIONAL AREAS bigbash.com.au. Retrieved on 6 January 2016
  16. ↑ "Possibility of Women's Big Bash League". Ninemsn. 19 January 2014.
  17. ↑ "Eight teams announced for Women's BBL". cricket.com.au. 19 February 2015.
  18. ↑ BIG BASH LOOKS TO CHRISTMAS CLASH bigbash.com.au. Retrieved on 22 December 2015
  19. 1 2 Big Bash League 2015–16 schedule – Tournament kick-starts on December 17 cricketmad.com. Retrieved on 4 December 2015
  20. 1 2 What's next for the Big Bash League? Since you asked… theroar.com.au. Retrieved on 4 December 2015
  21. 1 2 3 Big Bash League final at Manuka Oval "disappointing" for Perth Scorchers fans smh.com.au. Retrieved on 2 December 2015
  22. ↑ New look and feel for freshly formed Big Bash teams, ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 22 April 2011.
  23. ↑ Big Bash League: double-headers, derbies, big egos all on show in 2015–16 version of BBL news.com.au. Retrieved on 4 December 2015
  24. ↑ Sydney Sixers v Perth Scorchers sportsbanter.com.au. Retrieved on 4 December 2015
  25. 1 2 BBL|05: Contracting for the next Big Bash League begins cricketbadger.com. Retrieved on 2 December 2015
  26. ↑ Big Bash League / Records / Series results espncricinfo.com. Retrieved on 4 December 2015
  27. ↑ "Perth Scorchers / Records / Twenty20 matches". ESPN. Retrieved 25 November 2015.
  28. ↑ Big Bash League 2011–12 espncricinfo.com. Retrieved on 2 December 2015.
  29. ↑ Big Bash League 2012–13 espncricinfo.com. Retrieved on 2 December 2015.
  30. ↑ Big Bash tweaks player rules smh.com.au. Retrieved on 3 December 2015.
  31. ↑ Million-dollar salary cap for Big Bash League espncricinfo.com. Retrieved on 3 December 2015
  32. ↑ Five ways on how to improve the Big Bash theroar.com.au. Retrieved on 3 December 2015
  33. ↑ IPL cash trumps Big Bash in grab for stars thedailytelegraph.com.au. Retrieved on 3 December 2015
  34. ↑ Cricket legend Dean Jones tips more Big Bash cash heraldsun.com.au. Retrieved on 3 December 2015
  35. ↑ Marquee players want slice of Big Bash pie theaustralian.com.au. Retrieved on 3 December 2015
  36. 1 2 BBL|06 CONTRACTING PERIOD OPENS sydneysixers.com.au. Retrieved on 27 January 2016
  37. 1 2 CA INCREASE BBL|05 PRIZE POOL bigbash.com.au. Retrieved on 15 December 2015
  38. ↑ Big Bash League: Infant tournament now part of Australian cricket's summer fabric heraldsun.com.au. Retrieved on 25 November 2015.
  39. ↑ CROWD RECORDS TUMBLE AT STRIKERS SEMI-FINAL adelaidestrikers.com.au. Retrieved on 25 November 2015.
  40. 1 2 Big Bash League schedule released cricket.com.au. Retrieved on 25 November 2015.
  41. ↑ SCORCHERS SET LEAGUE SELL-OUT RECORD perthscorchers.com.au. Retrieved on 12 January 2016
  42. ↑ New Big Bash League broadcaster Channel Ten thrilled with ratings for season opening derby heraldsun.com.au. Retrieved on 25 November 2015.
  43. ↑ Big Bash League schedule released cricket.com.au. Retrieved on 25 November 2015
  44. ↑ Season Wrap - BBL|05 bigbash.com.au. Retrieved on 25 January 2016
  45. ↑ BBL AND WBBL SOAR TO NEW HIGHS bigbash.com.au. Retrieved on 25 January 2016
  46. ↑ #SydneySmash breaks ratings record bigbash.com.au. Retrieved on 19 December 2015
  47. ↑ Session 2: 1.36 mil Peak 1.67 mil Audience up 41% on 2014-15 Session 2 ave #BBL05 Malcolm Conn - Commercial Manager, Cricket Australia. Retrieved on 25 January 2016
  48. ↑ SBIG ratings for BIG #BBL05 #BBLFinal! 1.79 mil watched @ThunderBBL win their first title. Peak 2.24 mil Audience up 17% 2015 final session 2 Malcolm Conn - Commercial Manager, Cricket Australia. Retrieved on 25 January 2016
  49. ↑ "WACA to shift Test matches to new Perth Stadium at Burswood". WAToday. 3 September 2015. Retrieved 2 December 2015.
  50. ↑ Big Bash League/Records/Cup records espncricinfo.com. Retrieved on 6 January 2015

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 11/30/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.