BBL 10: Is it wise to tweak cricket with multiple rule changes at once?
Cricket Australia (CA) is all set to host the 10th edition of their domestic franchise cricket, Big Bash league from December 10, 2020. Over the last couple of years, BBL has witnessed a decline in the TV ratings and crowds, which has resulted in less monetary benefits from the tournament. Thus, ahead of the 2020 edition, the Australian cricket board decided to introduce three key changes namely ‘Power Surge’, ‘X-factor Player’ and ‘Bash Boost’, to innovate the game and excite the local audience.
The rule changes implemented by BBL
However, to develop the interest of the viewers and make the game more interesting, CA tweaked the rules a little too much and can be considered guilty of playing with the quality of the sport. According to the “Power Surge” rule, the mandatory 6 over powerplay at the beginning of the innings is reduced to 4 overs. In addition, the batting side can avail the remaining 2 over powerplay at any point of the game after the 11th over. This can be considered as a major advantage for the batsmen as for 2 overs there will be only two fielders positioned outside the inner ring towards the fag end of the innings.
Entertainment levels ?
“The Power Surge, X-Factor and Bash Boost prioritise high scoring, exciting cricket, introduce new strategic angles and ensure there’s always something to play for throughout the entire match,” – Head of BBL, Alistair Dobson #BBL10 pic.twitter.com/Nacna2XHw9
— KFC Big Bash League (@BBL) November 15, 2020
The second “x-factor” rule can be considered as one of the most intriguing and controversial changes from BBL 2020-21. This rule allows the teams to bring in a 12th or 13th player in the match field to replace any batsman or bowler who hasn’t bowled or batted for more than one over till the 10th over of the first innings. This rule plays with the core fundamentals of the game as cricket is an 11-player sport and should be played like that only.
The third and the last ‘Bash Boost’ rule signifies that a bonus point will be allotted to either the bowling or batting side at the midpoint of the second innings. The side batting second will get the bonus point if they are ‘above the equivalent 10-over score of their opposition’. However, if the situation is opposite, the fielding side will be awarded the bonus point.
Conclusion
These massive change of rules saw mixed reactions from both the cricketers and the fans. While many veterans opposed the idea saying that to increase the popularity and viewership, one doesn’t need an overhaul in the shortest format of the game, others suggest that this will make the game more thrilling and will please the audiences.
Though it is good to see cricket boards thinking about tweaking the rules of the franchise cricket to ensure that T20 cricket remains a viable product across the globe, there should be no changes in the basic template of the game as that will make the T20 format lose its essence.
