Defending champions Sydney Sixers will be locking horns with Melbourne Stars in the inaugural match of the 11th season of the Big Bash League (BBL) as the game will be played on December 5 at the Sydney Cricket Ground. The fixtures were announced on Wednesday – subject to changes needed due to Covid-19 – with the season starting and finishing earlier than recent summers.
The BBL 2021 is a shortened tournament lengthwise compared to last year as it will last for just 55 days as compared to 59 days last year. The final of the tournament will be played on January 28, which is inside the school holidays. The board hopes that it will help boost the crowd numbers. The BBL 2021, unlike last season, has been scheduled as a full home-and-away competition although Covid-19 will keep everyone on their toes.
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The tournament starts will be commencing three days before the men’s home Ashes series commences and will finish a couple of days before the white-ball series begins against New Zealand. This means that teh Test players will not be able to take in the tournament.
📅 #BBL11 SCHEDULE 📅
A full home-and-away fixture, plus finals before the end of January. Summer holidays set ✅
DETAILS: https://t.co/ldXiuE4H0M pic.twitter.com/HjspFvyfZz
— KFC Big Bash League (@BBL) July 14, 2021
Also, the proposed BBL draft for overseas cricketers has been postponed for another year due to the ongoing uncertainties regarding the availability of foreign players. Initially pushed back from the 2020-21 season, it had been hoped to get the system up and running for this campaign but instead overseas cricketers – up to three per team – will be signed in the traditional way.
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As per the quotes in ESPNCricinfo, Alistair Dobson, the general manager of Big Bash Leagues said, “We really like the idea of an overseas player draft and it’s something that will be on the agenda again next year. But when we’ve considered the continuing challenges with overseas travel and the need to give players and clubs some certainty, we’ve made the call to postpone it for another year.”
It will be later confirmed if all three innovations brought into the playing conditions last year – Power Surge, X-Factor, and Bash Boost – will continue or not; The Surge was accepted by fans and experts alike as it brought excitement during the middle-overs of the innings.
