More WBBL matches could move to primetime as viewership hits new records

A WBBL final which brought a record crowd and record TV ratings could herald a shift towards more primetime matches in the future as the tournament looks to its next stage of evolution.

Perth Scorchers claimed the title on Saturday in front of 15,511 spectators at Optus Stadium which set a new benchmark for a standalone WBBL match. It also had the largest average broadcast audience in the competition's history with 535,000 put it ahead of the 2018-19 final which was played ahead of a day of men's Test cricket.

This was the first season where every match was available on television and overall CA said it was the most-watched edition. While Alistair Dobson, the general manager of Big Bash Leagues, believes the weekend festivals, which see multiple matches at the same venue, will continue to be an important part of the tournament there will be a push to exploit more evening time slots.

"Ultimately the ambition was of getting every game on TV and we were really thankful we could do that this year," Dobson told Cricday. "The next evolution is to optimise those blockbusters and there's an opportunity for us to explore more primetime matches, whether that's Thursday or Friday nights, and working with our broadcasters to build up some big annual marquee matches which I think is the obvious next step for the competition."

The new finals structure, which gave the team who finished top of the regular season direct entry into the final, meant there was a week to promote the match in Perth.

"I think it worked exactly how we intended to give us a full week's build-up but also rightfully rewarding the team that finished first with the biggest advantage which we felt was warranted," Dobson said. "The atmosphere and noise just showed how passionate the fans are and think the quality of the game did it justice as well.

The season started in a Tasmania-based hub due to border restrictions in Australia and barring a brief lockdown in Hobart was played without significant problems although two major markets - Melbourne and Sydney - were unable to stage games.

The Indian overseas players had a significant impact on the competition with Harmanpreet Kaur named player of the tournament although it was Beth Mooney and Amanda-Jade Wellington who topped the run-scoring and wicket-taking charts.

"Firstly just being able to play and getting all eight teams together in Tasmania was no mean feat," Dobson said. "But then the quality of the cricket throughout, the quality of the overseas players, it was amazing to have such a great group of Indian players, they brought a whole new dimension, alongside all the other players.

"Matched by the depth of talent in Australia, a lot of the really big household names were easily matched by a lot of players we are all getting to know a lot better.

"In reinforces the WBBL as the No.1 cricket league for women and it's really important we maintain that position in the future."