The Big Bash League has become one of the major success in the Australian cricket world. The money spinner has been seemingly going from strength to strength since the league started back in late 2011.
The resulting aftermath of this success, especially since Channel 10 took the rights to the league in 2013, has called for expansion of the BBL.
The reality is though that despite how big a success that the BBL has been recently, the quality of the cricket has not actually been that great. The standard of fielding at times has been absolutely diabolical.
In the semi final, Alex Ross was dropped twice, with the first drop admittedly being a pretty tough chance, but the second one was a pretty simple catch for Ben Dwarshuis that went down.
Chris Lynn might have led his side to victory against the Sydney Thunder earlier in the season, but it was after he was dropped numerous times, including by Shane Watson in the final over.
The actual standard of the cricket can be pretty poor as well. As a result of Dwayne Bravo going down for the Renegades, Trent Lawford was called in as his replacement, before another international player was signed.
Trent Lawford is a bowler who can bat a bit, except that he’s not exactly that great a bowler. In his seven Shield games, he averaged 36 with the ball, but take out his one 5fer that average goes up to 41.
In his two one-day games he conceded 119 runs from 85 balls. His most economical performance was going at 7 an over, with all of one wicket. In T20 games, he averages nearly 50, with an economy of nearly nine.
The game between the Adelaide Strikers and Melbourne Renegades is another example of the poor quality of cricket. Adelaide used Michael Neser, Liam O’Connor, Wes Agar and Ben Laughlin as their bowlers along with the overseas Ish Sodhi and Kieron Pollard.
Of those four, only Laughlin and Neser have played a Sheffield Shield game. Thanks to his status as a limited overs specialist, Laughlin last played a Shield match in early 2012, which saw Luke Ronchi play for WA as an Australian. Ronchi has played Test matches for New Zealand.
Neser can be in and out of the Queensland side, while Agar has only played five one day games. This is the sort of attack we should start expecting on a more regular basis if we have BBL expansion. Is that what we want for Australian cricket? To have an attack containing an in and out Shield player, one T20 specialist, two inexperienced players backed up by two international players?
If there was expansion, it’d probably see two new teams. If squad sizes were to stay at the current 18, and even if there was another international player allowed per team, this leaves 24 new players to come into the ‘system’.
Who would that 24 make up of? More grade players like Lawford. More young talent, like Agar and O’Connor. The result would be, we would see more players like Cameron Gannon getting a gig, despite barely playing any domestic cricket recently.
We’d see more Brad Hodge and Dave Hussey, keeping on going despite their age. We’d see more Liam Bowes seemingly coming out of nowhere and playing in the BBL. Is this the spectacle we want to see in the BBL. A side filled out of the not quite good enough, too old and the too young?
Until the scheduling of the Australian summer changes to allow more players to play the Big Bash rather than the ODIs, the gap between players is simply too large for expansion to be an option.
The next 24 players in Australian cricket to earn BBL contracts, most likely, aren’t ready. The quality needs to be there, and currently, the quality isn’t there, to justify BBL expansion
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