Records smashed as WBBL|03 begins

Thousands of fans packed into North Sydney Oval and hundreds of thousands more tuned in to watch records tumble as the third season of the Rebel Women’s Big Bash League opened in scintillating fashion across a blockbuster weekend.

A crowd of more than 8,726 fans headed to the picturesque North Sydney Oval for four of the six matches, with the remaining two matches being hosted at Glenelg’s Gliderol Stadium. Crowds were treated to incredible cricketing feats, a wonderful family friendly atmosphere, and plenty of off-field entertainment.

The WBBL|03 opening weekend also proved to be popular with television audiences who tuned in to the four matches broadcast live on Network’s Ten’s primary channel.

The prime-time match between the Sydney Sixers and Melbourne Stars attracted an average national audience of 422,500 viewers, peaking at 629,000. This was a 59 per cent increase on the WBBL|02 season average, making it the biggest average audience for a regular WBBL match. The first match televised on Saturday, between the Sydney Thunder and Melbourne Renegades, saw an average national audience of 278,500, peaking at 426,000.

Overall, the first day average audience of 350,500 represented a 46.6 per cent increase on the season average for Rebel WBBL|02.

On the field, fans witnessed a host of significant records broken at both venues with a massive 2,023 runs scored across the six matches.

Sydney Thunder’s 6-200 in the opening match of the season stood as the highest recorded score in WBBL history for just a few hours before Sydney Sixers superstars Ashleigh Gardner and Ellyse Perry powered their side to a massive 4-242. This was the highest ever total compiled in either the women’s or men’s Big Bash competitions.

Gardner’s 114 off 52 balls featured 10 sixes and was not only the highest score in WBBL history, it was also the fastest WBBL century, off 47 balls.

Gardner also reached 50 runs in record time (22 balls), before the Melbourne Stars’ South African recruit, Lizelle Lee, equaled the record in the next innings. The Sydney Sixers-Melbourne Stars match aggregate of 398 also exceeded the previous best total in a WBBL match.

The Adelaide Strikers also set a WBBL franchise high score of 3-183 against the Hobart Hurricanes in their match on Saturday, before the Strikers’ Suzie Bates added to the big hitting of the weekend on Sunday, notching up 102 runs in her team’s 83-win over the Hurricanes.

The crowd numbers, record television ratings, incredible on-field performances, and great public interest in the weekend continues the positive trend in women’s cricket following the successful 2017 Commonwealth Bank Women’s Ashes series.

Families at North Sydney Oval also enjoyed visits from stars of the KFC Big Bash League as part of the Sydney Thunder and Sydney Sixers family days on Saturday and Sunday, including the likes of Mitchell Starc, Shane Watson, John Hastings, Peter Nevill and more.

The WBBL opening weekend was supported by huge promotion from Cricket Australia, the Big Bash franchises, Network Ten, Rebel and Nickelodeon, further underpinning Cricket Australia’s commitment to women’s cricket and goal to cement the WBBL as a global leader in women’s sport.

"It has been amazing to see the response from the public to the opening weekend of WBBL|03 and it has set the tone for what should be another incredible season," Cricket Australia Head of Big Bash Kim McConnie said.

"The atmosphere at North Sydney Oval was electric, with so many kids coming along with their families to enjoy the record-breaking on-field performances and family-friendly entertainment in and around the ground.

"It was also wonderful to see that hundreds of thousands more fans across the country enjoyed the Big Bash action from the comfort of their homes thanks to Network Ten’s fantastic broadcast. Ten has been a great supporter of the WBBL for the first two seasons of the competition and we are excited to be working with them again for WBBL|03.

"The success of the weekend is thanks to the efforts of many involved in Australian cricket and is testament to our ambition of making the WBBL as the best women’s sporting competition in the world."  

Network Ten’s Dave Barham said it had been exciting to work with Cricket Australia on another successful opening weekend of the WBBL.

The Rebel WBBL|03 comprises of 59 matches including 22 double headers with the KFC Big Bash League – including the semi-finals and final – and will see 12 matches broadcast live and free on Network Ten’s main channel. All non-televised Rebel WBBL|03 matches will be live streamed on cricket.com.au, on your mobile or tablet device via the Cricket Australia Live app, or on Mamamia.

How can I tune in?

This season, you will be spoiled for choice with where to get your daily dose of WBBL action. Network Ten is broadcasting nine matches on its main channel during the regular season, with both semi-finals to be shown on One, before the final returns to Ten. All remaining matches will be live streamed free on cricket.com.au and via the CA Live app.

This year, Australia’s No.1 editorial brand for women, Mamamia, has jumped on board and joined forces with Cricket Australia. The partnership will see Mamamia carry all 47 cricket.com.au live-streamed matches.

How can I go to a game?

The great news is, all WBBL standalone games are free to attend! Rock up at the ground, walk through the gates and get ready to enjoy a few hours of pulsating cricket entertainment with your family and friends.

Tickets for the WBBL-BBL double-headers can be purchased here.

Is there a WBBL Fantasy competition?

This summer there is a revamped Big Bash Fantasy competition, featuring the WBBL for the first time! The WBBL Fantasy will look slightly different to the men’s, with a new team of five players able to be picked each game day. Select two batters, two bowlers, a wicketkeeper and you’re right to go!

Details on the new-look competition are here, while you can sign up for Big Bash Fantasy here.