The Big Bash League (BBL): Australia's T20 Extravaganza

Cricket has always been one of the most popular sports in Australia and the result of that, The Australian Cricket Team is one of the best cricket teams in the history of the sport. They are the only team in the world ever to have won all the major ICC Tournament Trophies, the ICC ODI World Cup, the T20 World Cup, the Champions Trophy and the World Test Championship. With such an impressive history, cricket in Australia is more than a sport, it is a tradition. Yet, amidst this, there exists a carnival of raw power, electrifying excitement, and unbridled entertainment known as the Big Bash League (BBL). The Big Bash is the Australia’s very own version of the IPL tournament and has given some of the craziest moments that we have ever seen. Played in the large Australian Stadiums, with bouncy and pacy cricket pitches, it is one of the most entertaining tournaments in the T20 format.

Credit: myKhel

Let’s explore about the Big Bash League, the inception, the past winners and the unforgettable moments in this article by ZAP. 

What is the Australian Big Bash League (BBL)?

Just like the Indian Premier League (IPL) in India, the Big Bash League is a premier T20 Cricket Tournament held in Australia. The Big Bash League is a men's professional club Twenty20 cricket league in Australia. It was set up by Cricket Australia and the first every tournament was played in 2011 and till now 12 seasons have been played. The BBL matches are held during the Australian Summer, from December to until February. The 13th edition (2023) season kickstarts from the 7th of December and the final will be held on 24th January 2024. 

Big Bash T20 League Teams and their home grounds:

Credit: The Week

The Big Bash is an 8 team tournament similar to what the IPL was until 2022. During the formation of the tournament it was pitched that the tournament has 6 teams based on the 6 states of Australia. But instead, the tournament now features 8 teams, representing 6 major cities from the Australia and Tasmanian region. There are 2 teams, both from Sydney and Melbourne, the two biggest cities in the country. Six of the eight participating teams have won the championship at least once. With five titles, the Perth Scorchers are the most successful team in the league's history. The Sydney Sixers have won the championship three times. Brisbane Heat, Sydney Thunder, Adelaide Strikers, and Melbourne Renegades are the other four teams that have taken home the Big Bash League (BBL) trophy.
Here's all the teams in the BBL and their home grounds:

Team	Home Ground	City
Adelaide Strikers	Adelaide Oval	Adelaide, South Australia
Brisbane Heat	Brisbane Cricket Ground	Brisbane, Queensland
Hobart Hurricanes	Blundstone Arena	Hobart, Tasmania
Melbourne Renegades	Marvel Stadium	Melbourne, Victoria
Melbourne Stars	Melbourne Cricket Ground	Melbourne, Victoria
Perth Scorchers	Perth Stadium	Perth, Western Australia
Sydney Sixers	Sydney Cricket Ground	Sydney, New South Wales
Sydney Thunder	Sydney Showground Stadium	Sydney, New South Wales

Read More about T20 Franchise Teams: Mumbai Indians | Chennai Super Kings | Kolkata Knight Riders | Royal Challengers Bangalore

BBL Tournament Format:

Since its inception in 2011, the Big Bash League (BBL) has maintained a consistent format, except for its inaugural season. Initially, the tournament featured 28 group stage matches, later expanding to 32. Since the 2018–19 season, each team plays all others twice, totalling 56 regular season matches before the finals. 

In earlier seasons, group stage matches were divided into eight rounds, with teams playing six opponents once and one team twice. Sydney and Melbourne, each with two teams, had the opportunity for two derbies in a season. The top four teams advanced to the semi-finals.

The final is held at the home ground of the highest-ranked team, except for the 2014–15 season when it was played at a neutral venue due to the Cricket World Cup.

The knockouts system changed in 2019-20 season, giving a change to the 5th ranked team in the table too to move to the finals. Here's the knockout system: 

Iconic Rivalries in the Big Bash League:

Melbourne Stars vs Melbourne Renegades (Melbourne Derby):

Credit: ESPN Cricinfo

The Melbourne Renegades and Melbourne Stars compete in the Melbourne Derby. The rivalry is clear, both teams play in the same city, with both the stadiums situated in the same city. It's like Manchester United vs Manchester City in Football. In BBL05 at the MCG, the record attendance for a BBL match was set during the Melbourne Derby with 80, 883 spectators. In 24 matches played till now, the Melbourne Stars have had the upper hand with 15 wins and the renegades with 9. 

Read More: Football vs Cricket

Sydney Sixers vs Sydney Thunder (Sydney Derby):

Credit: ESPN Cricinfo

The Sydney Sixers and Sydney Thunder, two teams based in Sydney, square off in the Sydney Smash (Sydney Derby). Even though the Sixers have defeated the Thunder 16 times to 7, there are still big crowds at every game.

Perth Scorchers vs Sydney Sixers (The Best 2 Teams in the BBL):

Credit: Cricket Australia

These are the two best teams with the Perth Scorchers having won the title 5 times with the sixers 3 times. No other team has won the tournament more than once. Because of their unmatched success, the rivalry between the Sixers and Scorchers has grown over the course of the league's twelve seasons. The two teams have even faced off in the BBL Final 5 times, with Perth winning 3 times and the Sixers winning 2 times. 

BBL Past Tournament Winners:

Credit: Sky Sports

Year	Match Between	Result	Winner	Finals Venue	Finals Attendance
2011–12	Sydney Sixers vs Perth Scorchers	Sixers won by 7 wickets	Sydney Sixers	WACA Ground, Perth	16,255
2012–13	Brisbane Heat vs Perth Scorchers	Heat won by 34 runs	Brisbane Heat	WACA Ground, Perth	18,517
2013–14	Perth Scorchers vs Hobart Hurricanes	Scorchers won by 39 runs	Perth Scorchers	WACA Ground, Perth	20,783
2014–15	Perth Scorchers vs Sydney Sixers	Scorchers won by 4 wickets	Perth Scorchers	Manuka Oval, Canberra	11,837
2015–16	Sydney Thunder vs Melbourne Stars	Thunder won by 3 wickets	Sydney Thunder	MCG, Melbourne	47,672
2016–17	Perth Scorchers vs Sydney Sixers	Scorchers won by 9 wickets	Perth Scorchers	WACA Ground, Perth	21,832
2017–18	Adelaide Strikers vs Hobart Hurricanes	Strikers won by 25 runs	Adelaide Strikers	Adelaide Oval, Adelaide	40,732
2018–19	Melbourne Renegades vs Melbourne Stars	Renegades won by 13 runs	Melbourne Renegades	Docklands Stadium, Melbourne	40,816
2019–20	Sydney Sixers vs Melbourne Stars	Sixers won by 19 runs	Sydney Sixers	SCG, Sydney	10,121
2020–21	Sydney Sixers vs Perth Scorchers	Sixers won by 27 runs	Sydney Sixers	SCG, Sydney	25,295
2021–22	Perth Scorchers vs Sydney Sixers	Scorchers won by 79 runs	Perth Scorchers	Docklands Stadium, Melbourne	10,333
2022–23	Perth Scorchers vs Brisbane Heat	Scorchers won by 5 wickets	Perth Scorchers	Perth Stadium, Perth	53,886

BBL Best Moments and What makes it Stand Out:

Credit: Sportskeeda

In the 2018–19 season, a 'bat flip' replaced the coin toss to determine batting/bowling first.

The Finals of the BBL Tournament are held at the home ground of the team leading the points table after the end of the group stages, adding an incentive to be the best team throughout the league. 

The BBL Features a player and batsman camera and mic system, where the commentators can talk live directly to the player, giving us insights directly about the game from the players  view. 

The team that finishes last is given The wooden spoon in Big Bash League as an imaginary and ironic "award" marking a funny gesture. 

Big Bash League Tournament and Player Records: 

Batting Records:

1. Most Runs: Chris Lynn - 3,421 runs
2. Highest Batting Average: Brad Hodge - 42.78
3. Highest Score: Glenn Maxwell - 154* vs Hobart Hurricanes (19 January 2022)
4. Highest Partnership: Marcus Stoinis & Hilton Cartwright - 207 vs Sydney Sixers (12 January 2020)
5. Most Sixes: Chris Lynn – 194

Read More about Batting Records: Most Runs in Cricket History | Most Centuries | Most Sixes

Bowling Records:

1. Most Wickets: Sean Abbott - 153
2. Lowest Average: Lasith Malinga - 15.00
3. Best Strike Rate: Henry Thornton - 11.9
4. Best Economy Rate: Lasith Malinga - 5.40
5. Best Bowling Figures: Lasith Malinga - 6/7 vs Perth Scorchers (12 December 2012)

Read about More Bowling Records: Most Wickets in History | Fastest Ball ever Bowled 

Fielding Records:

1. Most Dismissals (Wicket-Keeper): Jimmy Peirson - 72
2. Most Catches (Fielder): Jordan Silk - 70

Team Records:

1. Highest Team Total: Melbourne Stars - 273–2 (20) vs Hobart Hurricanes (19 January 2022)
2. Lowest Team Total: Sydney Thunder - 15 (5.5) vs Adelaide Strikers (16 December 2022)

Australian Women’s Big Bash League T20 (WBBL):

Credit: Caught at Point

The Big Bash League was the first tournament that put forth the idea of a premier women’s tournament to promote Women’s cricket with the WBBL. Cricket Australia declared on February 19, 2015, that a Women's Big Bash League (WBBL) would start in the 2015–16 season, featuring teams that would be matched with the men's league. There would be two teams from Sydney and Melbourne and one each from Adelaide, Brisbane, Hobart, and Perth. It was revealed that the teams will use the same names and colours as the current men's BBL teams.

The Sydney Thunder, Sydney Sixers, Brisbane Heat WBBL Team has won the tournament twice each and the Adelaide Strikers and the Perth Scorchers have won it once each. 

FAQ: