BBL13: Why Big Bash critics have it wrong and Australia’s T20 competition is thriving
Record TV ratings. Sold out stadiums. Talking points galore. The Big Bash League is back in a big way — but, how do league bosses build on the BBL’s resurgence?
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Critics be damned. The Big Bash League is back.
Australia’s T20 competition has gone from a crossroads to a re-emerge as one of the summer’s biggest sporting drawcards.
Just as critics circled and spruiked the tournament’s demise, the BBL has rallied with record crowd numbers and soaring TV ratings.
Here are nine reasons the Big Bash’s detractors have it wrong and three ways the competition can build on a surge in interest.
1. CROWDS ARE RISING
More than 42,000 at Adelaide Oval. Two crowds past 40,000 at the Optus Stadium “Furnace”. More than 30,000 at the MCG to watch the Stars and Sixers. It has been a bumper summer for BBL crowds, especially considering how many games have been affected by weather.
The average crowd of more than 19,000 ranks among the highest in BBL history. Renowned stats man Rick Finlay noted the average of 19,351 (as of January 10) was higher than in any of the previous 12 tournaments. In a summer when Test crowds have been under the microscope, tens of thousands are regularly flocking to BBL matches across the country.
Yes, it’s not quite the halcyon days when more than 80,000 watched a Melbourne derby live but the appetite for the BBL in many parts of Australia has never been stronger. The shortened season appears to be a winner because there is a greater emphasis on each game and fewer opportunities to see each team in their home state. After 30 games, more than 500,000 fans had attended BBL13 games.
41,027 🤩
— Sydney Cricket Ground (@scg) January 12, 2024
The biggest ever @SixersBBL home crowd at the SCG 👠pic.twitter.com/ToJ3JqYFgz
Amazing atmosphere at Marvel tonight. Second highest ticket sales in the club’s history! â¦@RenegadesBBLâ© â¦@StarsBBLâ© pic.twitter.com/j6x5KUuHOf
— Nick Cummins (@CricketVicCEO) January 13, 2024
2. TV RATINGS ARE UP
Approaching the final week of the season, Foxtel Group has recorded streaming growth of 10 per cent, making this summer the most-streamed BBL on record for Kayo. With a commentary team featuring Mike Hussey, Ian Smith, Harsha Bogle, Michael Vaughan, Brad Haddin, Brett Lee, Brendon Julian, Isa Guha and Kath Loughnan, viewers have been treated to the best BBL analysis night after night.
It’s clear the BBL has become a staple in many households. Last year, as TV figures trended upwards, BBL boss Alastair Dobson said: “We look at other codes and things like Friday Night Footy as being a marquee broadcast, and really the BBL is doing Friday Night Footy every night of the week.”
On Channel 7, more than eight million people have tuned in to BBL games.
There has been a huge spike in viewers in Brisbane (+24 per cent), which has coincided with the Heat topping the table and the return of Usman Khawaja and Marnus Labuschagne for two matches.
Channel 7’s national BBL audience has been 484,000 and also includes a 2 per cent increase in Melbourne.
3. THE CULT HEROES
The BBL was at its best when Craig Simmons came from relative obscurity to become an overnight sensation with Perth Scorchers. In truth, he had been playing domestic cricket for a decade. However, fans couldn’t help but be captivated by the story of the sparky who loved a chicken roll and Coke on the way to a game.
Last year we were treated to Josh Brown the bat maker who wowed Adam Gilchrist and this season it’s Tall Paul Walter and his aeroplane that have soared in Brisbane. How many Aussie cricket fans could honestly say they had heard of Walter two months ago? Now fans in Queensland and interstate have Tall Paul in their sights for selfies and signatures after every game.
The BBL is built on characters and players such as Walter deliver personality in spades. Not to mention the value players have delivered on field providing laughs and tactical insights to TV viewers.
My first live BBL match in about five years. Absolutely loved it. I’m a Test cricket lover but can absolutely see why this dominates our summer.
— Michael Whiting (@MichaelWhiting) January 10, 2024
4. THE AUSSIE STARS ARE KEEN
Can you imagine the idea of David Warner chartering a helicopter from his brother’s wedding to be part of a BBL game a few years ago? The window between Test series was limited and no one would have begrudged Marnus Labuschagne, Usman Khawaja, Steve Smith or Alex Carey putting their feet up before taking on the West Indies. Yet they were all made available to bring added star power in a short pre-finals burst.
It wasn’t long ago the BBL seemed a hindrance in an already packed schedule but franchises and league bosses have done well to convince the Australian stars to squeeze in a BBL cameo or two.
5. MORE THAN 50K SUPERCOACHES
Australia’s favourite fantasy cricket game has more than 50,000 registered coaches. Every few days, they get to trade some of the BBL’s biggest stars in and out of their teams. Plus, there’s even more excitement riding on every wicket and key moment as your players score points and you rise up the overall rankings.
6. SUBURBAN STARS UNEARTHED
Nikhil Chaudhary has gone from blasting off for Norths in Queensland grade cricket to a key cog in Hobart Hurricanes’ middle order. Last year Josh Brown graduated from the same Brisbane club to thrill crowds at the Gabba. Seemingly every summer there is a rags-to-riches story to follow of a player who has waited years for an opportunity and takes it.
Chaudhary looks set for a long future and rival clubs would surely be making inquiries about his plans for BBL14 and beyond. Hayden Kerr was a similar story, going from Sydney Uni to the Sixers and performing so well that he attracted interest from the IPL.
7. THE STARS OF YESTERYEAR
Where else can you be treated to a vintage Shaun Marsh innings in prime time? Or watch a 37-year-old Andrew Tye bamboozle batters? The BBL is more renowned for being about style rather than substance, which is the reality of T20 cricket. But it’s hard not to get drawn into the nostalgia of Marsh making runs at Marvel, a 36-year-old Moises Henriques continuing to be one of the competition’s tactical masterminds or 39-year-old Peter Siddle charging in for the Renegades.
It’s not quite Brad Hogg giving batsmen headaches into his 40s but the BBL continues to extend the careers of Test and one-day stars of the past and give a younger audience an insight into heroes of the previous generation.
8. THE NEW KIDS ON BLOCK
Jake Fraser-McGurk has been hailed as an Australian star-in-waiting after announcing himself in spectacular fashion for the Renegades by blasting sixes for fun at Marvel Stadium.
In a stadium named after superheroes, Fraser-McGurk has fast become a hero of many aspiring cricketers with his often unconventional but highly successful batting style. Teenager Cooper Connolly is already a fan favourite in the west after his BBL12 final heroics, Jack Edwards has announced himself as an all-rounder this season, Ollie Davies looks destined to be one of Australia’s premier T20 batters and Xavier Bartlett is only just scratching the surface of his white-ball talents at 25 years of age.
9. THE HEADLINES
Tom Curran being charged with umpire intimidation. A game abandoned after 41 balls in Geelong due to the pitch. Chris Jordan whacking a record 50. Matches washed out in summer. International availability dramas. Glenn Maxwell’s elbow injury. That all happened in the first week or so of BBL13. Throw in Laurie Evans’ insane 85 not out from 28 balls, catching controversies, a collapse of 7-5 from the Scorchers, DRS dramas and a captain being dropped mid-season.
Wherever you turn in the BBL there is drama and most fans can’t get enough. The BBL has gone from being a footnote in most sporting conversations to one of the hottest topics of discussion.
NEXT STEPS
1. MAKE MELBOURNE GREAT AGAIN
The Stars and Renegades have been more akin to the Melbourne millstones since meeting in the BBL08 decider. The Renegades, who triumphed in that final, are in danger of their fourth wooden spoon in five years. The Stars were touted as the BBL’s marquee club in the competition’s formative years but are one of only two franchises yet to win a title. Their improvement under Englishman Peter Moores has been encouraging, although there remains a heavy reliance on the extraordinary talent of skipper Glenn Maxwell.
The Renegades loaded up with experience after finishing third last season, bringing in Quinton de Kock, Peter Siddle and Adam Zampa. But their BBL13 campaign has been nothing short of a disaster and they were lucky to escape with a share of the points against title contenders Perth Scorchers in Geelong.
The Big Bash has shown it doesn’t necessarily need two strong Melbourne clubs to thrive but it’s a better competition when the Stars and Renegades are firing and creating a buzz in Victoria’s capital. The fans need more reasons than Maxwell and Jake Fraser-McGurk to get along to Marvel Stadium or the MCG. Maxwell is 35 and while his powers show no sign of waning, there’s a likely expiry date of four to five years as the BBL’s Melbourne drawcard.
While it’s unlikely a Melbourne derby will again draw 80,000, 50,000 isn’t out of the question if both teams are contenders.
2. EXPANSION
Ricky Ponting recently called for Sydney Thunder to be shifted to Canberra but that was more to do with the Sydney Showgrounds wicket than the need for a team in the nation’s capital. Gold Coast, Canberra, Western Australia, Far North Queensland and Geelong have been mooted as potential expansion opportunities for the BBL to explore. But how about the reintroduction of a Cricket Australia XI?
The concept was previously used in Australia’s 50-over competition and helped kickstart the careers of players such as Matt Short, Mark Steketee, Josh Inglis and Xavier Bartlett. Imagine a team full of young stars such as Harry Dixon, Sam Konstas and Harkirat Bajwa, players considered the next generation of Aussie cricket. The issue would be that the CA XI won once in 12 attempts across 2016-17 and the BBL needs more competitive games, not less.
There’s no question Australian sporting fans love an underdog, though. Maybe a CA XI is the answer to having a few more games in Canberra? Sprinkle in a few suburban stars in the mould of Chaudhary and maybe the kids could spring a few surprises.
3. ENCOURAGE MORE PLAYER MOVEMENT
There is arguably no bigger period of the AFL calendar – outside grand final week – than the trade period. If the Big Bash League wants to generate headlines and continue to be relevant in the winter months, greater player movement is an obvious step.
Adam Zampa’s switch to Melbourne Renegades this season aside, the competition’s biggest stars are rarely lured to cross-town rivals or interstate. Imagine a two-week window in which clubs could move players. The other idea that has been mooted is a domestic draft to mirror the international draft. Players are open to the concept.
4. SHORTEN THE BBL WINDOW
There are reportedly already talks underway to shorten the BBL season into a tighter window and avoid crossover with the lucrative UAE competition. Colin Munro, Sam Billings, Laurie Evans, James Vince and Jamie Overton were among the international stars who did not feature in finals after jetting to the middle east to play. The BBL needs to finish before the UAE competition starts or find a compromise where contracted players still feature in finals. It’s a less than ideal situation when internationals play such a big part in their teams making finals, only to leave on the cusp of a finals series.
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