Australia's white-ball stars to be available for entire BBL season following schedule tweak
The upcoming season of the Big Bash League (BBL) is likely to begin in the first weekend of December and finish towards the end of January next year. The last time BBL finished in January was during the 2016-17 edition of the league.
According to a report in cricket.com.au, BBL organizers are set to finalize their schedule this week. The report added that the BBL final would be held a few days before Australia's one-day series against New Zealand, which starts on January 30.
As a result, Australia's limited-overs specialists like Glenn Maxwell, Aaron Finch and Marcus Stoinis are likely to be available for the entire BBL season.
Australia’s Test stars though would be unavailable for the T20 league as they would be busy with national duty. Big names like Pat Cummins, Steve Smith, David Warner and Mitch Starc hence look set to miss out on the upcoming BBL season.
Apart from a change in schedule, BBL double-headers are likely to be held at night following a day of an Ashes Test. Ratings have revealed that BBL games played following the day of a Test match have had the most viewership.
BBL has also seen a reduced crowd presence in recent years since the tournament concluded in February as the school term in Australia begins in the same month.
BBL adds to bumper season of cricket for Australia
Apart from the BBL, Australia are set for a completely packed season of cricket. The limited-overs squad is currently in the West Indies and will head to Bangladesh from there. The home summer will kick off with the historic one-off Test between Australia and Afghanistan from November 27 to December 1 at the Blundstone Arena.
The Ashes will begin on December 8 at the Gabba and conclude on January 18 in Perth. Australia will then play three ODIs and a T20I against old rivals New Zealand from January 30 to February 8 followed by five T20Is against Sri Lanka.
The Women’s Ashes will be played as a multi-format series from January 27 to February 19 while the WBBL will be held from October 14 to November 27.