“Make sure it’s lucrative and exciting enough,” Alyssa Healy wants WBBL to refocus its purpose to keep pace with WPL

WBBL has completed its eight seasons and was the most envied league for women's cricket. But now with the WPL, the scenario is changing because it offers more money.

“Make sure it’s lucrative and exciting enough,” Alyssa Healy wants WBBL to refocus its purpose to keep pace with WPL

Alyssa Healy

Australia’s star opener Alyssa Healy penned down her thoughts on women’s cricket today on the occasion of International Women’s Day. Healy shared how the advent of the Women’s Premier League (WPL), will impact women’s cricket in general, plus she shed light on the future of women’s games in Australia.

She believes that Australia’s Women’s Big Bash League will need to become lucrative to keep pace with the WPL. The 32-year-old felt it a bit weird when players were sold in 2023 WPL auction like a “commodity based on how other people rated your skills“, calling it a completely foreign experience. But at the same time, she is happy to be a part of the league, as she can now witness how Indian cricket operates.

“For the WBBL to keep pace with the WPL and retain its status as the best domestic competition in the world, we need to make sure it’s lucrative and exciting enough for the best players to keep making the trip to Australia,” said Healy in her column for Cricket Australia.

WBBL has completed its eight seasons and was the most envied league for women’s cricket. But now with the WPL, the scenario is changing because it offers more money. So Healy believes the WBBL needs to “refocus on its purpose” to ensure that the best players keep playing in it.

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Alyssa Healy is wary of WPL

Alyssa Healy wants WBBL to refocus its purpose to keep pace with WPL
Alyssa Healy

Healy then said of her communication with India skipper Harmanpreet Kaur and vice-captain Smriti Mandhana about how this new league can do to Indian cricket the way WBBL did to Australian cricket. When fresh faces come into the group, they will have the chance to face world-class players like Beth Mooney and Nat Sciver-Brunt. India’s young players then will have the knack of performing straightway on the international stage.

“Now they’re playing in the WPL, bowling to the likes of Beth Mooney and Nat Sciver-Brunt day-in, day-out, it’s scary to think how much better that will make the Indian team,” Healy added. Healy stressed how the WPL will inspire the next generation of young girls in India to see a future in cricket.

Healy was roped in by the UP Warriorz for INR 70 lakhs and is now leading the side. Her team has secured one victory and the same number of defeats in the two games the Warriorz have played so far.

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