{"id":799318,"date":"2026-07-14T08:16:11","date_gmt":"2026-07-14T08:16:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/799318\/"},"modified":"2026-07-14T08:16:11","modified_gmt":"2026-07-14T08:16:11","slug":"big-bash-league-privatisation-push-not-a-cash-grab","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/799318\/","title":{"rendered":"Big Bash League privatisation push not a ‘cash grab’"},"content":{"rendered":"

Cricket Tasmania is hoping the Hobart Hurricanes will be better off under a new privatisation model. (Linda Higginson\/AAP PHOTOS)<\/p>\n

A push to privatise Big Bash League clubs is far from a cash grab but instead an opportunity to protect other forms of the sport, Cricket Tasmania boss Dominic Baker says.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Bold plans to sell-off stakes in the eight league franchises moved a step closer in mid-June when the six state bodies signed off on a “self-determination model”.\u00a0<\/p>\n

However, there are still administrative hurdles to clear – the boards of the state bodies must independently vote to accept the privatisation model.<\/p>\n

Baker, who oversees the Hobart Hurricanes, is supportive of the privatisation movement and said the Cricket Tasmania board was still keen to test the market.<\/p>\n

“That\u2019s all we\u2019ve committed to, to go to the next stage,” he told reporters on Tuesday.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“To see who’s out there, to see what they\u2019re prepared to bring to this franchise and this state.”\u00a0<\/p>\n

Baker visited India earlier this year and chatted with prospective team buyers and said he was continuing to talk with interested parties.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“We believe this is a really great opportunity to fuel growth in the sport. I think that gets lost in the argument a bit,” he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“This is about protecting what we love around cricket. Red-ball cricket, women\u2019s domestic cricket, pathway cricket … to have the funds to ensure that the Tasmanian Tigers brand is still strong.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“People think it is a grab for cash rather than an opportunity to continue to grow the game.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Tasmania
\n Cricket Tasmania boss Dominic Baker wants to keep the Tasmania Tigers (pic) brand strong. (Loic Le Guilly\/AAP PHOTOS)<\/p>\n

“We\u2019re open minded. We don\u2019t tend to get too concerned about what others think or do in this space. It\u2019s about what we think is right for us.”<\/p>\n

Cricket Victoria in June announced it had hopes of selling one of its two Melbourne licences.<\/p>\n

However, cricket governing bodies from NSW, Queensland and SA have held reservations about the privatisation push.<\/p>\n

Baker said crowds and ratings for the Hurricanes, who are reigning women’s champions and won the men’s title in 2024\/25, had increased last season.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The league is breaking new ground for season 2026\/27 by opening the competition with a game in India between the Melbourne Renegades and Perth Scorchers.\u00a0<\/p>\n

License this article<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Cricket Tasmania is hoping the Hobart Hurricanes will be better off under a new privatisation model. (Linda Higginson\/AAP…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":799319,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[564],"tags":[4764,4765,64,63,4766,1348,740,3355,3359,44,3356,3354,3357,85,3358,1346],"class_list":["post-799318","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cricket","tag-aap","tag-aapnews","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-australian-news","tag-breaking-news","tag-cricket","tag-daily-news","tag-global-news","tag-news","tag-news-app","tag-news-headlines","tag-news-today","tag-sports","tag-today-news","tag-world-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/799318","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=799318"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/799318\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/799319"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=799318"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=799318"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=799318"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}