SCG, MCG off the menu in WBBL fixture change up
Squeezed by ICC events at one end and the men's BBL at the other, the tournament will be played through a five-week window again this summer.
Brisbane will host the Melbourne Renegades in the November 9 opener, one week after the 50-over women's World Cup final in India.
The final will then be played on December 13, the night before the men's competition kicks off in Perth.
The result means officials have again been forced to squeeze in 15 mid-week matches, with that number a slight reduction on last year's 17.
But the biggest change in the schedule is the lack of matches in big stadiums on the east coast.
Cricket Australia had invested heavily in marketing the events in recent years, only for crowds in the 5000s for the two double-headers at the MCG in the past two seasons.
The SCG fared slightly better, with 7118 through the gates for a double-header in 2023-24 before another double-header was played there last season.
Officials have opted against playing at either of the venues this year while prioritising North Sydney Oval, Drummoyne and Junction Oval in Melbourne.
The Gabba is also unavailable for the Brisbane Heat due to the lead up to the Ashes Test, while the Strikers will feature in a late-season double-header at Adelaide Oval after success there.
"Each season when we look at the schedule we look at the balance of the venues and the right opportunities to promote those games," BBL boss Alistair Dobson said.
"We enjoy playing in bigger stadiums for the past couple of seasons and look forward to being back at the Adelaide Oval again this year.
"The other games, largely due to scheduling reasons and the need to optimise those games in the big stadiums, we haven't found the right spots for them this year.
"But that's not to say it won't be in the future as the world's best cricket in the world's best stadiums is still part of our thinking going forward."
Officials did have the option of playing the final as a double-header with men's BBL tournament opener, but decided against it.
Such a move would have left the risk of the highest qualifier not being able to host the WBBL's showpiece event, while also meaning it would not have been a prime-time fixture for TV audiences.
"The WBBL is the world's best cricket league and one of the world's best cricket leagues and one of the most watched and popular sports leagues in Australia," Dobson said.
"We think that warrants having it in its own standalone and it's own prime-time audiences in the cricket calendar."
Cricket Australia has moved away from its big-stadium experiment for east-coast WBBL games, with no matches at the MCG or SCG in this summer's schedule.
Squeezed by ICC events at one end and the men's BBL at the other, the tournament will be played through a five-week window again this summer.
Brisbane will host the Melbourne Renegades in the November 9 opener, one week after the 50-over women's World Cup final in India.
The final will then be played on December 13, the night before the men's competition kicks off in Perth.
The result means officials have again been forced to squeeze in 15 mid-week matches, with that number a slight reduction on last year's 17.
But the biggest change in the schedule is the lack of matches in big stadiums on the east coast.
Cricket Australia had invested heavily in marketing the events in recent years, only for crowds in the 5000s for the two double-headers at the MCG in the past two seasons.
The SCG fared slightly better, with 7118 through the gates for a double-header in 2023-24 before another double-header was played there last season.
Officials have opted against playing at either of the venues this year while prioritising North Sydney Oval, Drummoyne and Junction Oval in Melbourne.
The Gabba is also unavailable for the Brisbane Heat due to the lead up to the Ashes Test, while the Strikers will feature in a late-season double-header at Adelaide Oval after success there.
"Each season when we look at the schedule we look at the balance of the venues and the right opportunities to promote those games," BBL boss Alistair Dobson said.
"We enjoy playing in bigger stadiums for the past couple of seasons and look forward to being back at the Adelaide Oval again this year.
"The other games, largely due to scheduling reasons and the need to optimise those games in the big stadiums, we haven't found the right spots for them this year.
"But that's not to say it won't be in the future as the world's best cricket in the world's best stadiums is still part of our thinking going forward."
Officials did have the option of playing the final as a double-header with men's BBL tournament opener, but decided against it.
Such a move would have left the risk of the highest qualifier not being able to host the WBBL's showpiece event, while also meaning it would not have been a prime-time fixture for TV audiences.
"The WBBL is the world's best cricket league and one of the world's best cricket leagues and one of the most watched and popular sports leagues in Australia," Dobson said.
"We think that warrants having it in its own standalone and it's own prime-time audiences in the cricket calendar."
Cricket Australia has moved away from its big-stadium experiment for east-coast WBBL games, with no matches at the MCG or SCG in this summer's schedule.
Squeezed by ICC events at one end and the men's BBL at the other, the tournament will be played through a five-week window again this summer.
Brisbane will host the Melbourne Renegades in the November 9 opener, one week after the 50-over women's World Cup final in India.
The final will then be played on December 13, the night before the men's competition kicks off in Perth.
The result means officials have again been forced to squeeze in 15 mid-week matches, with that number a slight reduction on last year's 17.
But the biggest change in the schedule is the lack of matches in big stadiums on the east coast.
Cricket Australia had invested heavily in marketing the events in recent years, only for crowds in the 5000s for the two double-headers at the MCG in the past two seasons.
The SCG fared slightly better, with 7118 through the gates for a double-header in 2023-24 before another double-header was played there last season.
Officials have opted against playing at either of the venues this year while prioritising North Sydney Oval, Drummoyne and Junction Oval in Melbourne.
The Gabba is also unavailable for the Brisbane Heat due to the lead up to the Ashes Test, while the Strikers will feature in a late-season double-header at Adelaide Oval after success there.
"Each season when we look at the schedule we look at the balance of the venues and the right opportunities to promote those games," BBL boss Alistair Dobson said.
"We enjoy playing in bigger stadiums for the past couple of seasons and look forward to being back at the Adelaide Oval again this year.
"The other games, largely due to scheduling reasons and the need to optimise those games in the big stadiums, we haven't found the right spots for them this year.
"But that's not to say it won't be in the future as the world's best cricket in the world's best stadiums is still part of our thinking going forward."
Officials did have the option of playing the final as a double-header with men's BBL tournament opener, but decided against it.
Such a move would have left the risk of the highest qualifier not being able to host the WBBL's showpiece event, while also meaning it would not have been a prime-time fixture for TV audiences.
"The WBBL is the world's best cricket league and one of the world's best cricket leagues and one of the most watched and popular sports leagues in Australia," Dobson said.
"We think that warrants having it in its own standalone and it's own prime-time audiences in the cricket calendar."
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