Ashish Ranjan
The 13th edition of the premier tournament, Big Bash League (BBL), is scheduled to commence on December 7 and conclude on January 24. Notably, this is the second time in the tournament’s history that the final will be contested in the middle of the week, due to Cricket Australia’s busy schedule during that time of the season. Significantly, West Indies will play a day-and-night Test against the host team (Jan 25-29), and thus the board has been unable to determine a suitable date for the final.
On the other hand, the quantity of matches will be reduced in the upcoming season. In the league stage, only 40 games will be contested, followed by Qualifier 1, Eliminator, Qualifier 2, and the all-important final.
“The dates of the KFC BBL season will again complement the overall shape of this summer’s cricket schedule and conclude well within the school holidays,” said Alistair Dobson, general manager of Big Bash Leagues for Cricket Australia.
“The start of the season will also present some unique opportunities to engage with communities, connect with fans, and introduce exciting new initiatives, which will be announced in due course,” he added.
BBL 2023 schedule: WBBL will commence on October 19 and conclude on December 2
The ninth season of the Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL) will commence on October 19, and, unlike the men’s edition, the number of matches will not be reduced. The schedule is anticipated to be released by the end of the following month, and similar to the men’s competition, only four teams will qualify for the next round, as opposed to five in previous seasons.
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The upcoming season will also commemorate the first-ever WBBL draft. Last year, over 330 athletes from around the world submitted their names for BBL, and Cricket Australia anticipates similar numbers for WBBL this season.
“As we observed last year, the BBL overseas player draft injected significant excitement and interest into the global T20 market, and we anticipate that this trend will carry over to the WBBL this season,” said Alistair Dobson.
