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July 10, 2024
Despite the popularity of doubleheaders in the rival T20 league, The Hundred, Cricket Australia is adamant that November is still “the right window” for the Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL).
On Monday, CA released the schedule for the tenth WBBL season, which begins Sunday, October 27, just one week after the Bangladesh T20 World Cup final.
In order to align with the men’s league, the WBBL has been trimmed to 43 games this season. The league has also been shortened from nearly seven weeks to five, aiming to attract more international players with a more condensed format.
The workload for top players has surged recently, driven by the expanded ICC Women’s Championship and the rise of lucrative T20 leagues like India’s WPL and England’s The Hundred.
Due to workload management, England all-rounder Nat Sciver-Brunt has already ruled herself out of this summer’s WBBL. At the same time, Indian star Smriti Mandhana has skipped the last two editions.
This season’s WBBL will have fewer weekday afternoon matches thanks to the shorter schedule, with more games moved to prime-time evening slots.
However, international commitments could still cause overseas players to miss parts of the tournament. South Africa is hosting England for a multi-format series in late November, which overlaps with the WBBL finals. India’s upcoming white-ball series against New Zealand, scheduled after the T20 World Cup, could also clash, though exact dates remain unconfirmed.
The WBBL became a standalone tournament in 2019, separating from the men’s competition to secure its spot in Australia’s sporting calendar.
It remains the most-watched sports league during that period, surpassing the AFLW with over 2.1 million Australians tuning in on free-to-air TV last season — not counting viewers on Foxtel and Kayo.
However, England’s The Hundred has attracted sizable crowds by hosting both the men’s and women’s doubleheaders at the same site, prompting calls for the WBBL to go back. to the school vacation. schedule alongside the BBL.
“I’ve seen what double-headers do,” Sydney Sixers coach Charlotte Edwards saidlast summer.
“I think for me that’s the way forward.”
Speaking to Fox Cricket, CA’s Head of Big Bash Leagues, Alistair Dobson, reaffirmed that November remains “the right window for the WBBL,” highlighting the tournament’s growing prominence as a standalone event.
Dobson noted that shifting the WBBL back to the crowded December-January window would risk overshadowing the competition by men’s Test cricket, which dominates Australia’s busiest summer period.
“We see great opportunity in having the world’s best cricket league for women taking the prime place in that time of year,” Dobson explained.
“Access to prime time coverage, access to the best venues and giving our clubs the opportunity to focus on the WBBL in that period of time is really important.
“That’s where it will stay.”
A record 95,124 fans attended last season’s WBBL, with 12,379 spectators watching the Strikers defeat the Heat in December’s final at Adelaide Oval.
As part of its Women and Girls Action Plan, unveiled in April, CA aims to attract 600,000 fans to women’s cricket in Australia by 2034. Last season, women’s international matches and the WBBL attendance was around 120,000.
However, WBBL crowds still lag behind England’s The Hundred, which drew nearly 300,000 fans in 2023. The Hundred’s success is primarily attributed to its double-header format, where women’s games are followed by men’s, boosting crowd numbers dramatically.
“The double-header model wasn’t the original proposition,” ECB chief executive Tom Harrison explained in 2021.
“We were forced to do that through Covid. But actually it’s turned out to be one of the best things that’s happened.
“It was an enforced change which has turned into a huge benefit.”
To prevent the women’s competition from being seen as a mere “warm-up” for the men’s matches, The Hundred’s marketing campaign focused on promoting both games as part of a full-day experience, enticing supporters to show up and take in the festivities.
“I would hazard a guess that had they not been double-headers, we would not have had the crowds that we have had,” former England bowler and World Cup champion Andy Shrubsole told the BBC.
Double-headers attracted large crowds during the WBBL’s inaugural season nearly a decade ago, with almost 13,000 fans attending the Melbourne derby at the MCG in January 2016, just hours before the men’s match.
This summer, the Gabba will host a WBBL game for the first time in six years, featuring the Brisbane Heat against the reigning champions, the Adelaide Strikers, on Saturday, November 9. Adelaide Oval, the SCG, and the MCG will also be part of an expanded ‘Stadium Series’ for WBBL matches.
The WBBL final is set for Sunday, December 1, following the AFL Women’s Grand Final.
All times local
Sunday, October 27, 2024 – Adelaide Strikers vs Brisbane Heat at Adelaide Oval, 1:10pm
Sunday, October 27, 2024 – Melbourne Renegades vs Sydney Sixers at Adelaide Oval, 4:40pm
Sunday, October 27, 2024 – Perth Scorchers vs Melbourne Stars at the WACA, 5:30pm
Monday, October 28, 2024 – Hobart Hurricanes vs Sydney Thunder at Blundstone Arena, 6:10pm
Tuesday, October 29, 2024 – Sydney Sixers vs Adelaide Strikers at North Sydney Oval, 6:10pm
Wednesday, October 30, 2024 – Brisbane Heat vs Melbourne Renegades at Allan Border Field, 6:10pm
Thursday, October 31, 2024 – Sydney Thunder vs Hobart Hurricanes at North Sydney Oval, 7:15pm
Friday, November 1, 2024 – Adelaide Strikers vs Sydney Thunder at North Sydney Oval, 3:45pm
Friday, November 1, 2024 – Sydney Sixers vs Melbourne Stars at North Sydney Oval, 7:15pm
Saturday, November 2, 2024 – Brisbane Heat vs Hobart Hurricanes at CitiPower Centre, 11.30am
Saturday, November 2, 2024 – Melbourne Renegades vs Perth Scorchers at CitiPower Centre, 3pm
Sunday, November 3, 2024 – Melbourne Stars vs Hobart Hurricanes at CitiPower Centre, 10.10am
Sunday, November 3, 2024 – Melbourne Renegades vs Adelaide Strikers at CitiPower Centre, 1.40pm
Tuesday, November 5, 2024 – Perth Scorchers vs Brisbane Heat at the WACA, 5:10pm
Wednesday, November 6, 2024 – Hobart Hurricanes vs Sydney Sixers at Blundstone Arena, 6:10pm
Thursday, November 7, 2024 – Sydney Thunder vs Brisbane Heat at the WACA, 2:05pm
Thursday, November 7, 2024 – Perth Scorchers vs Melbourne Renegades at the WACA, 5:35pm
Friday, November 8, 2024 – Melbourne Stars vs Sydney Sixers at CitiPower Centre, 11am
Saturday, November 9, 2024 – Melbourne Renegades vs Melbourne Stars at CitiPower Centre, 3pm
Saturday, November 9, 2024 – Brisbane Heat vs Adelaide Strikers at the Gabba, 6:15pm
Sunday, November 10, 2024 – Hobart Hurricanes vs Perth Scorchers at the SCG, 10:10am
Sunday, November 10, 2024 – Sydney Sixers vs Sydney Thunder at the SCG, 1:40pm
Monday, November 11, 2024 – Adelaide Strikers vs Melbourne Renegades at Karen Rolton Oval, 5:40pm
Tuesday, November 12, 2024 – Sydney Thunder vs Perth Scorchers at Drummoyne Oval, 6:10pm
Wednesday, November 13, 2024 – Hobart Hurricanes vs Adelaide Strikers at Blundstone Arena, 6:10pm
Thursday, November 14, 2024 – Sydney Sixers vs Brisbane Heat at North Sydney Oval, 3:30pm
Friday, November 15, 2024 – Perth Scorchers vs Sydney Thunder at the MCG, 3:45pm
Friday, November 15, 2024 – Melbourne Stars vs Melbourne Renegades at the MCG, 7:15pm
Saturday, November 16, 2024 – Adelaide Strikers vs Hobart Hurricanes at Adelaide Oval, 3pm
Sunday, November 17, 2024 – Melbourne Stars vs Brisbane Heat at Drummoyne Oval, 1:55pm
Sunday, November 17, 2024 – Sydney Thunder vs Sydney Sixers at Drummoyne Oval, 5:25pm
Tuesday, November 19, 2024 – Adelaide Strikers vs Perth Scorchers at Karen Rolton Oval, 5:40pm
Wednesday, November 20, 2024 – Sydney Thunder vs Melbourne Stars at Drummoyne Oval, 6:10pm
Thursday, November 21, 2024 – Sydney Sixers vs Perth Scorchers at Blundstone Arena, 3:45pm
Thursday, November 21, 2024 – Hobart Hurricanes vs Melbourne Renegades at Blundstone Arena, 7:15pm
Friday, November 22, 2024 – Brisbane Heat vs Melbourne Stars at Allan Border Field, 7:10pm
Saturday, November 23, 2024 – Melbourne Renegades vs Sydney Thunder at CitiPower Centre, 10:00am
Saturday, November 23, 2024 – Perth Scorchers vs Hobart Hurricanes at the WACA, 5:30pm
Sunday, November 24, 2024 – Melbourne Stars vs Adelaide Strikers at CitiPower Centre, 10:00am
Sunday, November 24, 2024 – Brisbane Heat vs Sydney Sixers at Allan Border Field, 7:05pm
Wednesday, November 27, 2024 – The Knockout (TBC)
Friday, November 29, 2024 – The Challenger (TBC)
Sunday, December 1, 2024 – The Final (TBC)
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Katarzyna Nowak is a seasoned writer with over five years of experience in editorial content, news reporting, and cricket sportsbook app reviews. As an author for Top Cricket News, she combines her deep understanding of the sports betting industry with a passion for cricket, delivering insightful and accurate content that keeps readers informed and engaged.
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