After the Indian Premier League, the Big Bash League is the next most popular cricket competition globally. It follows closely behind the IPL, where viewership and popularity are concerned.
There are many reasons the BBL is so popular, one of them being that international players compete worldwide. So if you’re interested in betting on the Big Bash League, we’ve prepared this article showing everything you need to know.
Big Bash League: Meaning and History
The Big Bash League is an Australian cricket league founded in 2011 by Cricket Australia. Cricket Australia is the official governing body for amateur and professional cricket games in Australia. The BBL features eight teams: Brisbane Heat, Adelaide Strikers, Sydney Sixers, Sydney Thunder, Melbourne Renegades, Hobard Hurricanes, Melbourne Stars, and Perth Scorchers. Apart from the Hobart Hurricanes and Melbourne Stars teams, each BBL league has won a trophy at least once since BBL began.
The BBL is a Twenty20 cricket league sponsored by KFC, the world-renowned fast-food outlet. There have been ten league seasons so far; the 2021-2022 tournament will be the eleventh edition. Perth Scorchers and Sydney Sixers are the teams with the highest scores; you could call them the most successful in the BBL. The Big Bash League is majorly held between December to February every year.
Aside from the fact that players from all over participate in the BBL on wesite, BBL is also popular for its innovations. The league has been a step ahead innovatively; it introduced the bat flip to replace the traditional coin toss. Nevertheless, due to the absence of most Australian superstars, the BBL has dropped in viewership over the last couple of years.
BBL Teams: 2021-2022
Eight teams are scheduled to participate in the 2021-22 Big Bash League tournaments. Below is a brief introduction of the BBL teams to play in the 2021-22 competition.
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Sydney Sixers
This team is one of the most consistent in the tournament; they struck gold almost immediately after they started. They’ve had a few captains over the years, but their most successful is Moises Henriques, who continues to lead them to victory.
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Perth Scorchers
Perth Scorchers is based out of Perth and is a consistent team in the BBL tournament. The team is currently led by Mitchell Marsh, who has led them to win three titles in a row. However, the last two seasons weren’t great for the team since they couldn’t make it to the playoffs phase.
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Melbourne Stars
The Melbourne Stars are like the IPL’s Royal Challenger Bangalore, with many superstars but cabinets empty of trophies. Currently led by Maxwell, they’ve made the playoffs eight out of the ten seasons, but they always finish as runners-up.
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Melbourne Renegades
This team hasn’t been consistent in the BBL, even though they’ve had many promising players. They had a BBL title when they won the 2018-19 championship, beating the Melbourne Stars in the final. Nic Maddinson and David Saker currently lead the team after its 9-season captain, Aaron Finch, bowed out.
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Adelaide Strikers
These winners of the 2018-19 BBL edition started poorly but picked up the pace along the way. The team is currently led by Peter Siddle, while one of their trump cards is Rashid Khan.
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Brisbane Heat
This team is renowned for being one of the most electric franchises in the history of the BBL. They boast of an excellent and powerful bowling unit, which led them to win the BBL second edition. However, led by Chris Lynn, the team has rarely been able to get to the knockout stages.
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Sydney Thunder
The other Sydney-originating team, Sydney Thunder, started the initial years of the BBL poorly, finishing last for years. However, they turned the tables in the 2015-16 edition, where they won a title and were the most-watched team during that season.
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Hobart Hurricanes
This team is one of the two teams in the BBL yet to take home a trophy. They’ve qualified but have never won, even though they are relatively consistent. The current captain of the Hobart Hurricanes team is Peter Handscomb.
BBL Basic Top Innovations
The BBL has produced several innovations; below are some of them:
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Power Surge
This refers to two overs when the fielding side cannot have more than two players outside the inner circle. After that, the batting side is free to opt for the Power Surge from the 11th over; they can also ante in the middle overs. Meanwhile, the Powerplay at the start of the innings drops to four overs.
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X-Factor Player
Each team must name a twelfth or thirteenth player on the team who substitutes an X-factor player after ten overs in the first innings. Such can replace any player who is yet to bowl or bat – or has bowled only one over.
Conclusion
Big Bash League is undoubtedly a fun tournament to bet on if you’re looking for numerous betting options. Meanwhile, you can play the game on the MPL (Mobile Premier League), where you’ll get a real-life-like game experience. In addition, the BBL 2021-22 edition promises to be bigger and loaded with more in-store matches, thus increasing your winning chances.
