From grassroots to glory: Impact of Women’s Big Bash League

Australian women’s teams are known for their dominance across the globe. Just like their men’s team, the women's team too believes in playing aggressive cricket. They have some really quality players like Ellyse Perry, Ashleigh Gardner, Alyssa Healy etc. With huge experience and the kind of skill set they possess, these players know how to turn scales in their favor. We have seen a lot of times in the past as well, whenever the Australian team is about to lose a game, some or the other individual steps in and makes their side win. 

One the reasons why the Australian team is so strong is because of the culture of sports in their country. Right from the domestic level, they have coaches who inculcate the right sporting mindset in them. Not only that, they get good quality matches at base level and that is when their preparations for senior level cricket start. One such tournament that has helped a lot in development of women’s cricket in Australia is Women’s Big Bash League. 

Today, in this article by ZAP cricket, we will discuss WBBL and how it has been a boon to the entire cricket fraternity in the country. 

What is WBBL?

The Women's Big Bash League is exactly like the Men’s Big Bash League. It is franchise cricket in Australia where the best players from the world are divided into eight city based franchises. The first edition was held in 2015-16, that is, four years after the start of BBL. 

The tournament kick started a renaissance. It changed the dimensions of the sport completely. More women started taking up cricket and the quality of skill also improved significantly. Before the tournament, Cricket Australia organized the Australian Women’s T20 Cup, but that didn't grab much of the public's attention. The money involved was also less. Later, when the WBBL was organized, the outlook of the game changed completely. In fact, this tournament played a major role in Australia’s success in the World Cups. 

In the previous editions, not all the games were televised, but now, as the tournament is gaining popularity, in WBBL 10, all the matches will be televised. Matches will be streamed on the official site of Cricket Australia. 

Statistics and records- WBBL

Current champions- Adelaide Strikers Women

Most successful- Sixers, Strikers, Heat, Thunder- 2 title each

Most runs- Beth Mooney (4,665 runs)

Most wickets- Jess Jonassen (165 wickets)

Highest score- Grace Harris- 136(59)*

Highest partnership- Alyssa Healy, Ellyse Perry 199* vs Melbourne Stars

Best bowling figures- Megan Schutt-6/19 (3.3 overs)

Most catches- Bridget Patterson- 52

Most dismissals- Alyssa Healy 93 (52 catches, 41 Stumpings)

Highest score- 242/4 by Sydney Sixers Women vs Melbourne Stars Women

Lowest score- 29 all out (9.3 overs) by Melbourne Stars Women against Adelaide Strikers Women

First hat-trick of WBBL- Nicole Bolton 

Most sixes- Sophie Devine (123) 

Teams in WBBL

Team	Home ground	Coach	Captain	Titles won
Adelaide Strikers	Karen Rolton Oval	Luke Williams	Tahlia McGrath	2
Brisbane Heat	Allan Border Field	Mark Sorell	Jess Jonassen	2
Hobart Hurricane	Ninja Stadium	Dan Marsh	Elyse Villani	0
Melbourne Renegades	CitiPower Centre	Simon Helmot	Hayley Matthews	0
Melbourne Stars	CitiPower Centre	Jonathan Batty	Annabel Sutherland	0
Perth Scorchers	WACA Ground	Becky Grundy	Chloe Piparo	1
Sydney Sixers	North Sydney  Oval	Charlotte Edwards	Ellyse Perry	2
Sydney Thunder	Blacktown ISP Oval	Lisa Keightley	Heather Knight	2

Winners list- WBBL 

Season	Winners	Player of the Tournament
2015-16	Sydney Thunder Women	Meg Lanning
2016-17	Sydney Sixers Women	Beth Mooney
2017-18	Sydney Sixers Women	Amy Satterthwaite
2018-19	Brisbane Heat Women	Ellyse Perry
2019-20	Brisbane Heat Women	Sophie Devine
2020-21	Sydney Thunder Women	Sophie Devine
2021-22	Perth Scorchers Women	Harmanpreet Kaur
2022-23	Adelaide Strikers Women	Ashleigh Gardner
2023-24	Adelaide Strikers Women	Chamari Athapaththu

WBBL 2024-2025

The 2024-2025 edition of WBBL is commencing from 27 October. The opening match will be played between Adelaide Strikers Women and Brisbane Heat Women at the Adelaide Oval. In total, there will be 43 matches and just like all the previous seasons, this year too, there will be a double round robin format. It’s too early to predict who is more likely to win this edition as all the teams look pretty solid. 

Squads in WBBL 2024-25

Brisbane Heat Women: Laura Harris, Charli Knott, Grace Harris, Lucy Hamilton, Nadine De Klerk, Shikha Pandey, Sianna Ginger, Georgia Redmayne, Lauren Winfield-Hill, Mikayla Wrigley, Bonnie Berry, Grace Parsons, Jess Jonassen, Nicola Hancock

Perth Scorchers Women: Chloe Piparo, Mikayla Hinkley, Amy Edgar, Carly Lesson, Amy Jones, Beth Mooney, Maddy Darke, Alana King, Chloe Ainsworth, Ebony Hoskin, Lilly Mills, Ni Putri Suwandewi, Piepa Cleary, Stella Campbell

Hobart Hurricane Women: Danni Wyatt-Hodge, Elyse Villani, Rachel Trenaman, Tabatha Saville, Chloe Tryon, Heather Graham, Kathryn Bryce, Nicola Carey, Ruth Johnston, Lizelle Lee, Amy Smith, Callie Wilson, Hayley Silver-Holmes, Lauren Smith, Molly Strano, Zoe Cooke

Adelaide Striker Women: Katie Mack, Laura Wolvaardt, Eleanor Larosa, Madeline Penna, Orla Prendergast, Tahlia McGrath, Bridget Patterson, Ellie Johnston, Amanda-Jade Wellington, Anesu Mushangwe, Darcie Brown, Jemma Barsby, Maggie Clark, Megan Schutt 

Sydney Thunder Women: Anika Learoyd, Claire Moore, Heather Knight, Phoebe Litchfield, Saskia Horley, Chamari Athapaththu, Ella Briscoe, Georgia Adams, Georgia Voll, Sammy-Jo Johnson, Tahlia Wilson, Hannah Darlington, Samantha Bates, Shabnim Ismail, Sienne Eve, Taneale Peschel

Sydney Sixers Women: Hollie Armitage, Mathilda Carmichael, Ash Gardner, Caoimhe Bray, Ellyse Perry, Erin Burns, Sophie Ecclestone, Alyssa Healy, Kate Pelle, Sarah Bryce, Courtney Sippel, Kate Peterson, Lauren Cheatle, Maitlan Brown

Melbourne Renegades Women: Courtney Webb, Emma de Brough, Naomi Stalenberg, Alice Capsey, Deandra Dottin, Georgia Wareham, Hayley Matthews, Josephine Dooley, Nicole Faltum, Ella Hayward, Georgia Prestwidge, Milly Illingworth, Sarah Coyte, Sophie Molineux, Tara Norris

Melbourne Stars Women: Ines Mckeon, Meg Lanning, Olivia Henry, Annabel Sutherland, Marizanne Kapp, Rhys McKenna, Tess Flintoff, Sophie Reid, Hasrat Gill, Kim Garth, Maisy Gibson, Sasha Moloney, Sophie Day