AUSTRALIA’s domestic Twenty20 cricket competition has received a shake up with the KFC Big Bash League (BBL) extending its fixture for 2017/18.
The Big Bash League, a major drawcard over Australia’s summer of cricket, has had another eight regular season games added to its schedule for BBL|07.
This year’s change will see the competition increase to 40 matches, before concluding the season with the regular three game finals format.
The revamped schedule released on Monday will see every team play ten regular season matches, increasing from eight in previous years.
Extending the amount of matches will not only benefit the league, but also help cricket continue to grow in Australia, according to Cricket Australia Executive General Manager of Events and Leagues Anthony Everard.
“The eight additional BBL matches have been scheduled to complement the existing regular season fixture, taking the BBL and WBBL (Women’s Big Bash League) to more locations and encouraging more people to give cricket a go,” Everard said in a media release on Monday.
This season’s Big Bash schedule will begin with the Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL) starting on December 9, before the BBL commences on December 19, both competitions will finish on February 4, 2018.
The entirety of the BBL season will continue to be broadcast live on Network Ten, while twelve matches of the WBBL will also be broadcast on the free-to-air network, with all remaining matches live streamed online.
“Every BBL match will again be broadcast on Network Ten after averaging more than a million viewers every match last season, complementing the record-breaking attendance, which averaged more than 30,000 per regular season match,” Everard said.
The new schedule continues an increase in regular season matches since the BBL’s inception, with BBL|01 featuring 28 matches before increasing to 32 games for BBL|02 and onwards.
Popular fixtures such as Adelaide’s New Year’s Eve match and the Melbourne and Sydney derbies are once again highlights of the BBL fixture.
according to me 