Following a strenuous season in which the BBL was bogged down in Covid-19 chaos amid dwindling interest, political elites and stakeholders in Australian cricket will soon meet to discuss the future of the reviled T20 competition. From instituting an overseas player draught to narrowing the season, it all has seemed to be on the countertop to help revive the BBL, which completed its 11th edition on time but at a cost for some critics. Crowds were down from their peak five years ago, owing to Covid-19 apprehension in the community, and television ratings, while still strong when compared to rival sports, had fallen.
The pandemic’s obstacles became severe this season, with some unknown players fielded to keep the competition going, but the utter lack of Australia’s top names was highlighted once again. Some foreign players had avoided the BBL entirely due to its nearly two-month season and the nation’s pandemic constraints. It inevitably sparked doomsday predictions about its future in the aftermath of Cricket Australia’s current billion-dollar broadcast deal going to expire in 2023-24. When officials and stakeholders gather in the BBL’s inner sanctum, they know some difficult questions must be addressed.
The Bubble of BBL
With kids and their families enjoying the unprecedented game time, the BBL erupted in the middle of the last decade, perhaps most notably in 2016 when over 80,000 fans witnessed the Melbourne Derby at the MCG, accompanied by 71,000 during the same fixture a year later. The BBL had a 35-game season opener and a season duration of around 40 days back then.
Given the tournament’s growing clout, and some speculation that it was on the verge of trying to overtake international cricket in prominence, an expanded BBL was a key component of CA’s billion-dollar broadcast deal with Channel Seven and Fox Sports in 2018. As CA cleared space in February – a month in the Australian sports calendar which is somewhat up for grabs – it resulted in a 56-match regular season over 60 days in 2018-19, rivalling the bloated IPL. However, the tournament’s length made a significant contribution to player and fan fatigue, and some international stars chose to sit out and pursue less highly taxed possibilities somewhere else.
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With the broadcast deal still very much in place, the BBL has kept the number of games the same but reduced the duration to 54 days in the most recent season. Picking the right timeframe that meets the needs of players, fans, and commercial interests is a constant challenge for BBL officials.
CA does try to accommodate the BBL’s climax in late January, during in the crucial school holidays, having nixed playing into February, as demonstrated this season when Australia’s decided to postpone ODI series against New Zealand was slated to start two days after the BBL final. However, cricket’s crowded calendar makes it virtually impossible for the BBL to have a self-contained window every year.
The ongoing exclusion of the Decision Review System (which would have been implemented in BBL|11 if not for the issues with navigating state borders) or any kind of challenge process is a major source of frustration. That is anticipated to be resolved for next season, though its implementation will incur additional costs for the league, just as the implementation of three new regulations two seasons ago divided coaches and players.
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