The Big Bash League burst onto the scene. Nursing the transition between dynasties, we saw household names in Ricky Ponting, Shane Warne and Matthew Hayden come up against the new generation of stars in David Warner, Steve Smith and Pat Cummins.
It was Australia’s answer to the Indian Premier League. But while it was a suitable competitor initially, the tournament has spiralled dramatically.
The Australian domestic T20 competition used to be one of the highlights of an already spectacular summer of cricket. Instead it is the main contributor to a logjam driving cricket in Australia into the ground.
Starting two months earlier than usual due to the T20 World Cup, Australians have experienced their longest ever cricketing summer at domestic and international level by a significant margin.
Most domestic and international matches in an Australian summer since 2009-10:
- 2022-23 summer: 178 matches (133 without the T20 World Cup)
- 2014-15 summer: 133 matches (107 without the ODI World Cup)
- 2019-20 summer: 130 matches
- 2018-19 summer: 129 matches
- 2021-22 summer: 121 matches
When the Big Bash started, the short-form domestic competition always managed to attract a crowd, packing out stadiums around the country. There were 80,000 people who saw Luke Wright put on a masterclass for the Stars in 2015-16 against their crosstown rivals. #TheFurnance boasted a home-ground advantage that the Boston Celtics of the mid-80s would be jealous of. The Adelaide Strikers and the Brisbane Heat played in front of sell-out crowds on a regular basis.
(Photo by Sarah Reed – CA/Cricket Australia via Getty Images)
From 2013-14 to 2017-18 just two matches registered a crowd of under 10,000. The first was a rain-abandoned affair between the Strikers and Hurricanes that saw six overs bowled for the entirety of the match. The second came five years later when the BBL went to the Red Centre for the first time, where the capacity of Traeger Park is 7200.
However, as time has passed and seasons have got longer, cricket enthusiasts have been heading for the exits. When the matches per season increased from 43 to 59 at the end of 2018, so did the number of games with a crowd of fewer than 10,000 people.
Big Bash crowds below 10,000:
- 2022/23 season: 13/34 (as of 8 January 2023)
- 2021/22 season: 45/60 (COVID-affected; discounting games behind closed doors)
- 2020/21 season: 39/60 (COVID-affected; discounting games behind closed doors)
- 2019/20 season: 12/61
- 2018/19 season: 5/59
Although the two biggest tallies were in COVID-affected seasons, the current tally is what should be most concerning. Just over half of the current 2022-23 season has been played and excluding 2020-21 and 2021-22, this season has played host to the most sub-10,000 crowds in Big Bash history.
So how can the Big Bash turn into the juggernaut it once was, captivating Australians on a nightly basis? Here are some suggestions.
(Photo by Sarah Reed/Getty Images)
Reduce the season
How has Cricket Australia not got the memo yet? Less is more. The notable trend in attendance figures plummeting is the increase in games per season. When compared to the other big T20 competitions around the world, only England’s T20 Blast (133) and the IPL (74) host more games than the BBL (61). The T20 Blast is extensive because there are two divisions, while the IPL screams for a longer season as it’s box-office viewing.
Although the Big Bash might try to emulate the Indian T20 competition, the Australian league is unable to attract the star power that the IPL can.
The recently agreed cricket broadcast deal for 2024 onwards outlined that each team would play ten matches per campaign for a 43-game season, including the finals, but it needs to be shortened further. Cricket Australia needs to strip the competition right back and start again, because the league is in SOS mode.
CA should go back to seven or eight rounds, as was the case for the first six editions of the tournament. This will allow the league to get back on its feet and generate bigger crowds before it grows back to ten rounds. Any more than ten rounds would put the BBL back at square one.
Don’t overlap with international cricket
How can you produce quality cricket when your best cricketers miss the bulk of the BBL season? The BBL season generally overlaps three Tests and the January block of ODIs and T20s, not giving international players the opportunity to play Big Bash or allow domestic players to fight for short-form selection.
International T20s and ODIs should be played during the first half of November before any Test matches are played. With January free for BBL, it will enable Australian internationals to play for the majority of the season.
This is how it should play out:
- Start the BBL on 30 December (Day 5 of the Boxing Day Test)
- The next match is the annual new year’s eve game, followed by a Melbourne Derby on New Year’s Day
- Each team plays seven games (once or twice a week)
- There are games every night
- The top four on the ladder enter a knockout finals campaign
- The season ends on the last week of January
Play at the major stadiums
For the BBL to thrive again, games must be played at the biggest stadiums around the country. Instead of burning revenue by playing at Junction Oval or North Sydney Oval, all matches need to be played at the stadiums that can hold the most fans. That includes scrapping most of these trips to all parts of the country. Character in the competition might diminish, but these measures are required to change the game for the better.
The Big Bash is on its deathbed. Once a major attraction on the Aussie cricket calendar, people can’t evacuate any quicker. Getting the competition back to its best should be the main priority for Cricket Australia. The contingencies suggested might gut out the league’s core, but it is the best-case scenario.
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