Big Bash League To Get Indian Flavour? Cricket Australia Pondering Hosting BBL Opener In India: Report

The vast reach of the Indian Premier League around the globe has elevated its level in the franchise cricket circuit. It has now been reported that the Big Bash League might host its opener in India from next season. As per the SEN Cricket, Cricket Australia wants to cash in on the popularity of the Indian market and is considering staging the BBL opener in Chennai.

BBL Could Venture Into Indian Market

As per the report, two senior Cricket Australia officials, Head of Business Operations Phil Rigby and Head of Competition Development and Strategy Margot Harley, already travelled to India in order to curate all the details and to find out the possibility of staging a match on Indian soil.

BBL franchises are yet to be officially informed, but this SEN Cricket report also states that Perth Scorchers remain the most viable option for BBL due to their familiar time zone, aligning with India. But staging a BBL match in India would not be easy, as Cricket Australia need to put pen to paper on an agreement with BCCI, which remains the father figure of Indian cricket.

BBL Hopes To Follow IPL Way

BBL has a huge audience in India, and if they can pull off this stunt, it could open up new avenues for both Cricket Australia and BCCI. Currently, BCCI doesn't allow its players to take part in any of the franchise leagues apart from the IPL. R Ashwin signed up for the Sydney Thunder in BBL 15 following his retirement, but the player was ruled out of the entire tournament due to an injury.

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This could be the first instance when a foreign cricket board will stage a tournament in India. The popularity of IPL has grown multifold since its inception in 2008 and BBL will hope to have a chunk of the pie by redirecting their focus to India.

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