WBBL Season Without MCG and SCG Stadium Matches

The upcoming Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL) season will not feature any matches at the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) or Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) as the popular Stadium Series has been put on hold for now. However, Cricket Australia has confirmed a Saturday night final, potentially at the MCG, the evening before the start of the Big Bash League (BBL) season.

Cricket Australia released the schedule on Friday, revealing a compressed 35-day WBBL season running from November 9 to December 13. The season fits between the Women’s ODI World Cup in India and the men’s BBL, which kicks off on December 14.

Limited Major Venue Matches This Season

The season will open with a grand final rematch between Brisbane Heat and Melbourne Renegades at the Allan Border Field, which will host a double-header including Sydney Thunder vs Hobart Hurricanes in a twilight game. In total, there will be 10 double-headers, but only one is set at a major international venue β€” Adelaide Oval will host two games on November 28.

Last season saw a bold move with several Stadium Series matches across top venues like the Adelaide Oval, SCG, Gabba, and MCG, including the final. This year, however, the schedule’s tightness has forced a scaling back.

Alistair Dobson, Big Bash League general manager, explained:

“𝑬𝒂𝒄𝒉 𝒔𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒐𝒏, π’˜π’† π’‚π’Šπ’Ž 𝒕𝒐 𝒃𝒂𝒍𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 π’“π’Šπ’ˆπ’‰π’• 𝒗𝒆𝒏𝒖𝒆𝒔 π’˜π’Šπ’•π’‰ π’π’‘π’‘π’π’“π’•π’–π’π’Šπ’•π’Šπ’†π’” 𝒕𝒐 π’‘π’“π’π’Žπ’π’•π’† 𝒕𝒉𝒆 π’ˆπ’‚π’Žπ’†π’”. 𝑾𝒆’𝒗𝒆 π’†π’π’‹π’π’šπ’†π’… π’‘π’π’‚π’šπ’Šπ’π’ˆ π’Šπ’ π’π’‚π’“π’ˆπ’†π’“ π’”π’•π’‚π’…π’Šπ’–π’Žπ’” π’“π’†π’„π’†π’π’•π’π’š 𝒂𝒏𝒅 π’π’π’π’Œ π’‡π’π’“π’˜π’‚π’“π’… 𝒕𝒐 π’“π’†π’•π’–π’“π’π’Šπ’π’ˆ 𝒕𝒐 π‘¨π’…π’†π’π’‚π’Šπ’…π’† 𝑢𝒗𝒂𝒍 π’•π’‰π’Šπ’” π’šπ’†π’‚π’“. 𝑫𝒖𝒆 𝒕𝒐 π’”π’„π’‰π’†π’…π’–π’π’Šπ’π’ˆ π’„π’π’π’”π’•π’“π’‚π’Šπ’π’•π’”, π’˜π’† 𝒄𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅𝒏’𝒕 𝒔𝒆𝒄𝒖𝒓𝒆 π’Šπ’…π’†π’‚π’ 𝒔𝒍𝒐𝒕𝒔 𝒂𝒕 𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓 π’ƒπ’Šπ’ˆ 𝒗𝒆𝒏𝒖𝒆𝒔 π’•π’‰π’Šπ’” 𝒔𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒐𝒏. 𝑩𝒖𝒕 π’˜π’† 𝒆𝒙𝒑𝒆𝒄𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒃𝒆 π’ƒπ’‚π’„π’Œ π’Šπ’ 𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒔𝒆 π’”π’•π’‚π’…π’Šπ’–π’Žπ’” π’Šπ’ 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒖𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒆.”

Final Venue Possibilities and Schedule Challenges

While the SCG and Gabba are unlikely to host matches this season, the MCG remains a possibility to host the WBBL final if a Melbourne team qualifies to host, especially since the usual venue, the CitiPower Centre (Junction Oval), will not have lights ready for the season. The final is scheduled as a Saturday night game, contrasting with last year’s daytime final.

Other venues like North Sydney Oval, Allan Border Field, and WACA have lights, but the Adelaide Oval will be unavailable on December 13 due to the men’s Ashes Test starting on December 17. The Karen Rolton Oval, however, will serve as a home ground for Adelaide Strikers and has lighting for evening matches.

Some clubs have raised concerns over parts of the schedule, as every team must host at least one game at a neutral venue. For example, Melbourne Stars and Perth Scorchers will face off in Adelaide just two days before playing against each other again in Melbourne. This arrangement stems from broadcaster requests to reduce the logistical complexity of moving equipment frequently during the condensed season.

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