As you know, a cricket match starts with a coin toss. The tradition has been continuing for more than a century.
But the Big Bash League (BBL) said goodbye to the old tradition in 2018 and instead came up with a new change. What change?
The Australian T20 league introduced the ‘bat flip’.
So what’s a bat flip? And what’s the purpose behind it?
In this article, let’s glance at the bat flip rule implemented in the BBL.
Bat Flip in BBL
For quite some time now, there have been talks of doing away with the coin toss in cricket matches. The BBL did remove the coin, but the toss still remains.
It’s just that the tool for the toss has changed, but the purpose remains the same. So instead of a captain flicking a coin in the air, they now flip a bat. And the opponent captain calls between ‘hills’ or ‘flats’ rather than ‘heads’ or ‘tails’.
Now before any BBL game begins, you will notice the bat flip taking place instead of the traditional coin toss.
Why did the BBL introduce the bat flip?
As has been the case, the BBL management, or in general, the Australians, love to infuse new ideas in cricket. Take the example of LED stumps and zing bails, cameras attached to the helmet, or the most recent ‘Power Surge’.
They just amaze you with their unique ideas, which you won’t see implemented in any other leagues or international cricket matches. So the bat flip is also on similar lines.
You see, the purpose behind the bat flip is to make the start of the match interesting. They thought the traditional coin toss doesn’t garner much attention, so why not shake up and do something else?
And that’s how they introduced the bat flip, which has been part of the backyard cricket played in Australia. The bat flip is a pretty normal thing in backyard cricket, with players deciding who bats first.
The BBL picked up the backyard concept and made it relevant for the local spectators, especially the young kids.
Do they use a special bat for the flip?
Yes, the BBL uses special bats made for the flip. You see, the regular cricket bats won’t produce an even result.
So to tackle this issue, the Australian cricket equipment manufacturer, Kookaburra, designed a special bat. The bat has a symmetric weight, which can give 50-50 results.
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