It scarcely feels a year since Hobart Hurricanes lifted the trophy, yet the Big Bash is back for season No. 15 and the discussion over formats, windows and who’s flying in for a short stint is louder than ever. December-January remains jam-packed, though a post-Ashes start should free up Australia’s Test players and give fringe names one more dress-rehearsal before next year’s T20 World Cup.
Sydney Sixers skipper Moises Henriques summed up the recruitment balancing act rather neatly. “We try not to pick a player for one year,” he said last week, stressing that the Sixers still value a core group even in the shuffle-heavy world of franchise cricket.
Below is a quick run-through of where each side sits. Squads can and probably will change, but, as things stand, here’s the lie of the land.
Adelaide Strikers
Captain Matt Short
Coach Tim Paine
Headline recruits: Hasan Ali (Pakistan), Luke Wood (England), Jason Sangha, Mackenzie Harvey
Key departures: Jake Weatherald (to Hurricanes), D’Arcy Short (not retained)
How they look
Tim Paine’s first campaign in charge never caught fire: bottom of the ladder and a top order that mis-fired on a surface that usually flatters batters. Weatherald has gone south and the veteran D’Arcy Short was let go, so Adelaide have freshened things with Sangha and Harvey. Both add right-hand class and a dose of youthful bustle.
The bigger headache, though, was death bowling. Totals repeatedly ballooned in the last five overs. Hasan Ali’s skiddy yorkers and Wood’s left-arm angle should help, and they will be glad to see Brendan Doggett’s overs replaced after he shifted to the Renegades.
Player to watch
Matt Short again wears the talisman tag. Two straight MVP seasons were followed by an injury-punctuated 2024-25 – 236 runs at 33.71, more than half of them in one brutal 109. Fit and firing, he is pressing hard for an Australian T20 World Cup berth and could hardly pick a better audition stage.
Availability check
Hasan is currently out of Pakistan favour, so unless he is recalled for the January T20Is against Sri Lanka he stays all season. Wood and Jamie Overton both sit on England’s radar for the same Sri Lanka tour starting 22 January; if picked, the Strikers will need cover. Travis Head and Alex Carey join once the Ashes finishes on 8 January.
Brisbane Heat
Captain Usman Khawaja
Coach Johan Botha
Shaheen Shah Afridi (Pakistan) is the headline name, joined by Tom Alsop (England) plus the core of Xavier Bartlett, Spencer Johnson and Matt Renshaw. Heat rode a power-play bowling surge last summer; Afridi’s new-ball swing only sharpens that weapon. The concern is late-innings hitting – one more finisher may still be signed.
[Further team capsules would follow in a full preview.]
The broader picture
The league office is still weighing up whether the marathon schedule needs trimming, while players juggle rival T20 tournaments and, in several cases, national duty. Yet the BBL retains its pull: quick crowds, straight-forward rules, and a decent payday for a month’s work. Fans, and indeed the selectors, will watch closely.
