The 11th edition of the WBBL will start hot on the heels of the 50-over World Cup, while the ‘Stadium Series’ will not return this season
Melbourne Renegades and Brisbane Heat will launch the Weber WBBL|11 season with a rematch of last year’s final, as the tournament gets underway with a blockbuster triple header across Brisbane and Perth.
Cricket Australia has unveiled the 43-game, 35-day schedule for WBBL|11, which will begin on Sunday, November 9, and culminate with the final on Saturday, December 13.
View the full schedule here
The season is starting a fortnight later than usual this summer due to the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup in India, which culminates on November 2.
One notable absentee from the schedule is the ‘Stadium Series’ that was a feature of the previous two seasons, which saw one-off matches played at top-tier venues including the MCG, SCG and Gabba.
Key points
– 43-game season runs November 9 to December 13
– Heat and Renegades to launch WBBL|11 with a final-rematch as part of an opening day triple header
– Every team to host matches over the first 10 days
– Seven Network and 7plus to broadcast 20 games live (including finals) with every match on Foxtel and Kayo Sports
– Both Melbourne derbies and Sydney Smashes on weekends free of international cricket
– WBBL action to bookend the first three days of the first men’s Ashes Test in Perth, including a ‘West Fest’ Saturday night when the Scorchers host the Strikers at the WACA Ground
Adelaide Strikers will return to Adelaide Oval for a third consecutive season, however, hosting Sydney Thunder on November 28 as part of a double header also featuring Sydney Sixers v Brisbane Heat.
Challenges around accessing other top-tier venues – particularly the Gabba, which is hosting the second men’s Ashes Test – played a role in the decision not to include a ‘Stadium Series’ in the WBBL|11 schedule, alongside a desire from host clubs Melbourne Stars and Sydney Sixers to focus on their core home venues at the CitiPower Centre and North Sydney Oval. The league has not ruled out using the larger venues for finals, however.
“Each season when we look at the schedule, we always looking for the balance of the right venues and the right opportunity to promote those games,” Cricket Australia’s General Manager, Big Bash Leagues, Alistair Dobson said.
“We’ve enjoyed playing in bigger stadiums for the past couple of seasons, and really looking forward to being back at Adelaide Oval this year.
“The other games, largely due to scheduling reasons and needing to optimise those games in those big stadiums, we haven’t found the right slot for them this year … that’s not to say we won’t be back there in the future, because (playing) the world’s best cricket league in the world’s best stadiums is still a part of our thinking going forward, but not for this season.”
Last season’s runners-up Brisbane will be out for revenge when they host the reigning champions at Allan Border Field on the opening day of the tournament.
A showdown between fellow WBBL|10 finalists Hobart Hurricanes and Sydney Thunder will follow at the same venue, before the action will head west where the Scorchers will host Sydney Sixers at the redeveloped WACA Ground to cap off the day one triple-header.
Melbourne Stars will then host the Adelaide Strikers the following day at the CitiPower Centre, as all eight clubs begin their seasons in the opening two days.
There will be no change to the structure of the finals series, which differs from the KFC BBL.
The team that finishes on top of the table at the end of the regular season will still host the final on Saturday, December 13.
The sides finishing third and fourth will meet in The Knockout on December 9 – to be hosted by the third-ranked side.
Matches to watch
November 9: Final rematch: Heat v Renegades season opener @ Allan Border Field
November 16: Stars v Renegades Derby @ CitiPower Centre
November 18: Sciver-Brunt’s first home game as a ‘Cane: Hurricanes v Strikers @ Ninja Stadium
November 21: Harris v Harris: Heat v Thunder @ Allan Border Field
November 22: West Fest: Scorchers v Strikers @ WACA Ground
November 30: Sydney Smash @ North Sydney Oval
November 28: Strikers v Thunder @ Adelaide Oval
December 7: Dunkley v Ecclestone: Sixers v Strikers @ North Sydney Oval
The winner of that game will then travel to play the second-ranked qualifier in The Challenger on December 11 for a spot in the final.
Every WBBL|11 match will be aired on Kayo Sports and Foxtel, including 20 matches exclusive to Fox Cricket, while 20 regular season matches and every final will be shown live and free on Seven and 7plus.
“We’re delighted with this action-packed schedule which starts with a blockbuster triple-header and features the marquee matches our fans have come to love,” Dobson said.
“With the WBBL season ending as the BBL starts, the Big Bash Leagues are cemented as the heartbeat of summer, with cricket to feature almost every night from November 9 through until Sunday, January 25.”
Sign up to the waitlist at bigbash.com.au for pre-sale access before tickets go on public sale. Pre-sale for WBBL|11 will start July 29 and August 12 for BBL|15.
