SuperCoach BBL will be back for the BBL|09 season — here’s everything you need to know about the season ahead

Following on from the incredibly successful return of SuperCoach BBL last season, the game you know and love will soon be back for another season.

Marcus Stoinis and Ben Dunk of the Stars were key players...but only the former was a superstar for his SuperCoach BBL owners - can he top the rankings again?

Following on from the incredibly successful return of SuperCoach BBL last season, the game you know and love will soon be back for another season. 

SuperCoach BBL launched October 30 - register now!

It’s sure to be another big year ahead — will D’Arcy Short from the Hurricanes be the main man when it comes to squad selection, with the all-rounder not just the highest scoring player in SuperCoach BBL last season but also the most-selected player?

D'Arcy Short of the Hurricanes was a star for SuperCoach BBL|08 — can he do the business for his owners again in BBL|09?

Or will one of the big name South African imports be the big name players that every SuperCoach player needs in their squad?

Everything is a bit different in BBL|09, with a new finals system set to shake things up, meaning that the schedule analysis will be an absolutely vital read in the coming days.

Star-studded: Big Bash squads for 2019-20

But fear not! We will have a heap of content published across the course of the pre-season leading into the first game of the BBL|09 season, when the tournament begins with the clash between the Brisbane Heat and the Sydney Thunder on December 17.

WHAT’S CHANGED?

A host of players have come and gone ahead of the BBL|09 season, with the big name thus far being the announcement that South African legend AB de Villiers will be joining the Brisbane Heat.

Rashid Khan will get more opportunities to celebrate taking the wicket of AB Devilliers — pictured here doing so in the IPL — when they take each other on again in the Big Bash League

His countryman, Dale Steyn, will be a part of the set-up with the Melbourne Stars, while yet another Springbok in Chris Morris will suit up with the Sydney Thunder.

A heap of local players have moved, with the likes of Shaun Marsh switching from his home town Perth Scorchers to the reigning champions Melbourne Renegades, while his former teammates Hilton Cartwright and Nathan Coulter-Nile will now be cross-town rivals at the Stars.

The big changes are not just on the player rosters, but with the make-up of the tournament structure when it comes to the finals series. In addition to the 56 home and away games, there will be five finals, with the decider to be played on Saturday, February 8.

Gun imports set to ignite Big Bash

The system will allow for a double-chance for the top two teams, following yet another year where the team that finished as the minor premiers was knocked out in the semi-finals.

On only one occasion has the first placed team at the end of the regular season lifted the trophy, with six out of the eight minor premiers bundled out before the final game of the season.

SuperCoach BBL launched October 30 - register now!

Melbourne Renegades celebrated the BBL|08 season with a premiership over cross-town rivals the Stars; can they do so again?

BBL 09 Finals format:

The Eliminator — Thursday 30 January — 4th vs 5th

The Qualifier — Friday 31 January — 1st vs 2nd

The Knockout — Saturday 1 February — 3rd vs winner of The Eliminator

The Challenger — Thursday 6 February — Loser of the Qualifier vs winner of The Knockout

The Final — Saturday 8 February — Winner of the Qualifier vs the winner of the Challenger

SUPERCOACH LEAGUE STRUCTURE: 14 TEAM LEAGUE

Last year, the league structure was based on head-to-head match-ups across the first 13 Rounds, before semi finals in Rd 14 (with first placed in a league playing fourth, and second playing third), before the final in Round 15 featuring the winner of those two match-ups.

This raft of changes made to the structure of the BBL|09 season means that the SuperCoach BBL|09 season expands to 17 rounds this year.

For standard 14-team leagues, head-to-head competitions kick off immediately in Round 1, with everyone playing each other once up to and including Round 13.

SuperCoach BBL launched October 30 - register now!

This year we are going with a three-round finals series. When Round 14 kicks off it’ll be the first versus second to guarantee a place in the final, and third and fourth taking each other on in an elimination final.

From there, the loser of the qualifying final plays the winner of the elimination final in Round 15, before they take on the winner of the qualifier in Round 16 to close out the league season.

SUPERCOACH LEAGUE STRUCTURE: 6 TEAM LEAGUE

For the smaller six team custom leagues, everyone plays each other twice over the first ten rounds, before the 3 round finals series is conducted over the final three round robin rounds of the season in the same finals format as the 14 team league.

How the SuperCoach BBL league finals will work

WHAT’S THE SAME?

The big thing is that scoring remains the same.

BATTING

Runs (per run scored): 1 point

For every run a player scores above the amount of balls faced: 1 point (eg: if a player scores 40 of 26 balls, they score an additional 14 points)

Bonus for every 6 hit: 2 points

Bonus for every 4 hit: 1 point

Key dates to shape your SuperCoach BBL team

BOWLING

Wicket: 25 points

Bonus for every three wickets in one match: 10 points

Maiden over bowled: 15 points

Dot ball bowled: 1 point

Extra conceded (includes wides and no balls): -1 point

Economy rate bonus:

* 4 or less RPO: 25 points

* 4.01-5 RPO: 20 points

* 5.01-6 RPO: 15 points

* 6.01-7 RPO: 10 points

* 7.01-8 RPO: 5 points

Note: Must bowl at least two overs for ER bonus

FIELDING

Catch: 10 points

Run out (player affecting run out): 20 points

Stumping (wicketkeeper only): 15 points

Note: Super Over stats / points are NOT included in this competition. Only stats / points accrued within the regular overs of each innings are included and attributed to the players.

New faces to target in SuperCoach BBL

SuperCoach BBL launched October 30 - register now!

Chris Lynn of the Heat has seen his scoring fluctuate from season to season — can he return to star SuperCoach status this time around?

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

First prize: $25,000

Round by round prize: The top 10 each round will receive a 3-month Kayo premium subscription

WHERE CAN YOU PLAY?

Register here when the game launches in the coming weeks to start selecting your squad!

SuperCoach BBL launched October 30 - register now!

All SuperCoach products are on one platform — so if you have played SuperCoach NRL, AFL, or Racing this season, then it’s your one-stop SuperCoach stop!

You can also play in the SuperCoach app — download it for iOS here or for Android here .

Originally published as SuperCoach BBL will be back for the BBL|09 season — here’s everything you need to know about the season ahead