Last Updated on 2 hours ago by Charbel Coorey
Melbourne Renegades and Perth Scorchers will contest the historic BBL 2026/27 season opener at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. The fixture is pending confirmation between Cricket Australia (CA) and the Australian Cricketers’ Association (ACA), and could be announced as early as next week.
According to CODE Sports, the match will begin in the late afternoon local time for broadcasting reasons after the fourth day of the first Test between Australia and New Zealand at Perth. This could be around 9:30pm Eastern Standard Time in Australia.
BBL season opener in Chennai: Renegades and Scorchers set to feature
The Renegades and Scorchers are two teams considered part of the privatisation plan moving forward. Earlier this year, Cricket Victoria announced the Renegades and Melbourne Stars will merge to become one team, with the other franchise to be sold to a private investor.
However, the move was subject to significant pushback from the ACA and other states. There are other conditions that need to be met for privatisation to go ahead smoothly, which led to a backflip on the decision.
Amid the criticism, BBL chief Alistair Dobson said that it will take some effort to win back trust of the fans, but excitement will build after the season begins.
“I think both teams, and both teams from both clubs, men’s and women’s, are set up in good shape from a list perspective,” Dobson told SEN radio in June.
“We’ve got to do some work now to bring those fans back on that journey for the clubs with Cricket Victoria. I think once they start to see the season come to life and for what’s true for the BBL, which is fun, family entertainment, summer nights of the cricket, those things will hold true.”
