The first game of the WBBL is on today and folks, get ready for a cracker of a season. It will be the most internationally diverse tournament yet with 23 overseas players making their mark on women’s T20 cricket in Australia.
Fans are particularly interested in Chamari Atapattu, the World Cup sensation from Sri Lanka. She will be the first ever Sri Lankan to play in the T20 tournament and expectations are certainly high as fans are in for an exciting game of cricket whenever she is on the field.
On Thursday, players from all the franchises were in Sydney for the official opening of the season. They revealed the new WBBL logo and showcased all the international (and local) players that will be taking the field during this tournament.
The head of Big Bash, Kim McConnie said in a statement that she wanted to attact some of the best women’s cricket players from right around the world, and that she has! New Zealand has 7 players in the WBBL, South Africa has 5, England 5, West Indies 3, India 2 and Sri Lanka 1.
To ensure that WBBL also breeds local talent, each team is allowed up to 3 overseas players. As well as this, the teams are not allowed more than 5 international players in total.
For example, a player might be from Australia but if they have played more than 10 one-dayers and/ or T20s in the previous 3 years leading up to this season, they are considered an international play.
It’s the opening weekend (today and tomorrow 10th December), so if you are in the Sydney area, make sure you head on down for the opening weekend carnival at North Sydney Oval. It’s free and there are tonnes of activities on (other than the awesome games of cricket you will watch).
Today there will be opportunities to meet the players (both WBBL and BBL), competitions, music, face painting and an awesome firework display after the game. And on Sunday it is more of the same, but the kids get to meet the team mascots.
It is true family affair and a great way to get the kids together for an outing. The match fixtures include:
- Melbourne Renegades vs. Sydney Thunder – Saturday 9th December, 1.45pm
- Sydney Sixers vs. Melbourne Stars – Saturday 9th December, 6.15pm
- Perth Scorchers vs. Brisbane Heat – Sunday 10th December, 10.45am
- Sydney Thunder vs. Sydney Sixers – Sunday 10th December, 2.00pm
Head on down to North Sydney Oval today and have some summer fun!