Big Bash 2022-23: All you need to know

The BBL returns for its 12th edition and The Cricketer has all the information you need to know

What is it?

The Big Bash is Australia's T20 competition and this year will be the 12th edition.

When is it?

BBL12 starts on Tuesday, December 13, with the Melbourne Stars playing the Sydney Thunder in Canberra.

The 56-match group stage ends on Wednesday, January 25, with the top five sides progressing to the knockout stages.

The five-match playoff series will begin on Friday, January 27 and culminate in the final on Saturday, February 4. The venues for the knockout stages are TBC.

Who is involved?

There are eight teams in the Big Bash, with two teams each from Sydney (Thunder and Sixers) and Melbourne (Stars and Renegades) alongside Brisbane Heat, Adelaide Strikers, Perth Scorchers and Hobart Hurricanes.

Hobart Hurricanes and Melbourne Stars are the only sides who are yet to get their hands on the trophy while Melbourne Renegades have collected the wooden spoon for the past three years.

^{Adam Zampa's Melbourne Stars are still searching for their maiden BBL title [Quinn Rooney/Getty Images]}

What's the format?

Teams play each other twice during the group stages, totalling 14 matches per side. The top five then progress to the knockout stages.

In the knockouts, the fourth and fifth-placed teams contest the eliminator, with the winner going on to face the third-placed team in the knockout. The top two teams face off in the qualifier, with the winner earning direct entry to the final. The loser, however, gets a second chance to reach the final when they face the winner of the knockout fixture in the challenger.

Teams receive two points for a win and one for matches which end in no result. The Bash Boost point, which saw the team with the most runs at the 10-over mark receive a bonus point, is no longer available while the X-factor substitution has also been removed.

The power surge, however, remains. Matches begin with a four-over powerplay rather than the traditional six, with the batting side able to call for a two-over powerplay at any point from the 11th over.

What happened last year?

Perth Scorchers won BBL11, beating Sydney Sixers by 79 runs to capture their fourth title. Adelaide Strikers, Sydney Thunder and Hobart Hurricanes also reached the playoffs while Melbourne Renegades finished bottom of the table once again.

Unfortunately for the Scorchers, they will be without final match-winner Laurie Evans for their title defence after the Englishman failed a drug test while Mitchell Marsh is also unavailable.

^{Since winning the title in 2018/19, Melbourne Renegades have been rooted to the bottom of the table [Mike Owen/Getty Images]}

Which players are involved?

There is no shortage of international talent involved in BBL12 and there is a sizeable English contingent.

Brisbane Heat and Perth Scorchers each have no fewer than three English players with Sam Billings, Sam Hain and Ross Whiteley lining up for the former and Tymal Mills, Stephen Eskinazi and Adam Lyth representing the defending champions.

James Vince and Chris Jordan will join forces at Sydney Sixers while Joe Clarke and Luke Wood are both set to represent Melbourne Stars. Adam Hose has been signed by Adelaide Strikers, Zak Crawley will turn out for Hobart Hurricanes as an overseas replacement for Shadab Khan and Sydney favourite Alex Hales will once again don Thunder green. Melbourne Renegades, however, have no English players.

Elsewhere, Rashid Khan, Colin de Grandhomme (Adelaide Strikers), Colin Munro (Brisbane Heat), Mujeeb ur Rahman, Akeal Hosein, Martin Guptill (Melbourne Renegades), Trent Boult (Melbourne Stars), Faf du Plessis (Perth Scorchers) and Rilee Rossouw (Sydney Thunder) are among the other headline overseas names.

And of course, the returns of David Warner (Sydney Thunder) and Steve Smith (Sydney Sixers) to Big Bash action is another coup.

However, while Australia's lack of white-ball cricket does mean their limited overs stars, such as Adam Zampa, Aaron Finch and Tim David, will be fully available, Test commitments will limit the involvement of Warner, Smith and co.

Furthermore, the tournament has been rocked by injuries and numerous high-profile withdrawals (a situation which will only get worse as players take up contracts in South Africa and UAE during the second half of BBL12).

Mitchell Marsh (Perth Scorchers) has already been ruled out of the tournament with an ankle injury while Glenn Maxwell (Melbourne Stars) faces a race againt time to return to fitness after breaking his leg in a freak accident.

No.1 draft pick, Liam Livingstone, was forced to pull out of his stint with Melbourne Renegades following a surprise Test call-up while Laurie Evans (Perth Scorchers) had his contract terminated following a failed drug test. David Willey (Thunder, personal reasons) and Phil Salt (Perth Scorchers, injury) have also withdrawn from the tournament.

^{Rashid Khan, Alex Hales and Chris Jordan are among the overseas contingent [Bradley Kanaris/Darrian Traynor/Getty Images]}

Who is the favourite?

There is not a lot to separate the eight sides this year and the impact of availability on rhythm and continuity, a vital component of T20 success, will be fascinating to see.

Sydney Thunder will be improved when they welcome Warner back into the Big Bash in mid-January and the same goes for the Brisbane Heat, who will be captained by Usman Khawaja when he is not on Test duty, and Sydney Sixers (Smith).

However, Melbourne Stars could be a strong bet to lift their maiden title despite missing captain and gun player Maxwell.

In Clarke and Stoinis they have batting experience, with the latter scoring the fastest half-century by an Australian in a T20I just a few weeks ago, while pace bowler Trent Boult and spinner Adam Zampa, who will step in as captain, lead the bowling group.

Where can I watch it?

Sky Sports hold the UK rights for the BBL, with coverage split between Sky Sports Main Event, Sky Sports Cricket and Sky Sports Mix.

Ball-by-ball radio commentary will also be available via BBC Radio 5 Live Sports Extra and BBC Sounds for selected matches.

Fox Sports and Seven Network both have television rights in Australia while coverage will also be available via streaming service Kayo. Fox will show every game while 45 matches, including the knockout stages, will be shown free-to-air on Channel Seven.

Related Topics

• Big Bash 2022-23 squads: Full BBL12 player list for all teams