Players ready for more back-to-back games to shorten the Big Bash

The Covid wave which took hold of the Big Bash this season could have provided the answer to shorten the season

Peter Siddle of the Strikers (Photo by Robert Cianflone/Getty Images)

As Covid swept through the Big Bash this season sending players in to isolation in large numbers and games had to be postponed there was a demand for back-to-back matches for some teams.

But being forced to play on Sunday night then a Monday afternoon, or two nights in a row could prove a light bulb moment for a competition which the players have demanded be shorter.

Some suggested they were “cooked” at times during the unparalleled season as the double-demand of playing in a bubble and playing after contracting Covid for some took a toll.

But veteran seamer Peter Siddle, the leading wicket taker in the BBL this season for the Adelaide Strikers, said players had come to realise it was doable and if they want a shorter season, as they all do, it could be the way forward.

Big Bash officials could meet their TV rights demands and there could be other flow-on effects in terms of international players more ready to commit.

“It’s not a hidden fact that it is a bit long,” Siddle, 37, said after being named captain of the BBL’s team of the tournament.

“Making it shorter is the key focus.

“This year we’ve had to rearrange games ... now we realise that maybe to make this season shorter, we might have to play back-to-back games and do different things.”

There is a growing sense the next version of the BBL will look different to the current one despite acknowledgment that it was some feat just to get the competition completed this season.

Next years MBBL should be 8 rds played on a Fri/Sat/Sun with 1 rd each weekend. T20 WC in October will create a lot of content before BB so lets make each game an event with big build ups/story lines/crowds similar to the winter codes. Would also allow some mid week shield games.

— Joe Burns (@joeburns441) January 12, 2022

But the marathon 60 game season from December 5 through to a January 28 final meant the competition was robbed of some star power.

The Adelaide Strikers and Sydney Sixers will play a preliminary final on Wednesday night, both teams missing drawcards.

The Strikers lost star spinner Rashid Khan, who would have been playing if the competition ended a week ago. England batter James Vince, man of the match in last year’s BBL final win for the Sixers, was called away on international duties.

“The word from anyone overseas that I chat to is their biggest worry is they don’t want to come here for that long and be stuck,” Siddle said.

“If you’re a shorter tournament, you’re probably not losing guys like Rashid Khan, James Vince, Sandeep (Lamichhane) (before finals).

The Strikers lost spinner Rashid Khan before the finals (Photo by Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images)

Last week BBL boss Alistair Dobson said that officials “hear the commentary” around the season length but that it had to be discussed in the context of the Covid impact this year before making any longer term decisions.

“It’s clearly a topic of discussion every year, and I think this year probably feels as long as any season given what everyone’s had to go through, players being away from home and being under pretty strict protocols certainly makes it feel longer,” Dobson said.

“The reality is it’s a 46-day season, it’s certainly not as long as some other sporting leagues, but that said, each year it’s about trying to find the right mix of how long it is, how many nights we can play, working in and around the Test season.

“But we hear the commentary and discussion and we take that onboard.”

Originally published as Players ready for more back-to-back games to shorten the Big Bash