Domestic season to start on October 11

August 4, 2009

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Another shot in the arm for Australian women's cricket © Getty Images

The 2009-10 Australian domestic season will start on October 11 with a Ford Ranger Cup match between the Western Warriors and Queensland Bulls in Perth. The match will be followed by the opening round of the Sheffield Shield, Cricket Australia said while unveiling the programme.

"Together with the Weet-Bix Sheffield Shield and Ford Ranger Cup, we have another strong men's interstate program on offer in 2009-10," Cricket Australia's CEO James Sutherland said.

There was also good news for women's cricket. "Women's interstate cricket has received an exciting expansion for 2009-10 with the Women's National Cricket League (WNCL) expanded to six teams and a new seven-team Twenty20 competition to be contested," Sutherland said.

The Australian Capital Territory (ACT) Meteors have been admitted into the Women's National Cricket League (WNCL) and the inaugural Women's Twenty20 competition, while Tasmania will compete in the new Twenty20 competition only. In previous years, women's teams had played a selection of independent Twenty20 matches throughout the season, but in the upcoming season, the matches will be consolidated into a competition.

The inaugural Twenty20 competition has been attached to WNCL rounds where possible, with nine matches also scheduled to be played as double-header clashes with the KFC Twenty20 Big Bash, including the final on January 23.

The KFC Twenty20 Big Bash would again be contested across the New Year period - from December 28 to January 23 - and the format will be identical to last season's with the top team qualifying automatically for the final with their opponent decided in a preliminary final.

"The lure of a spot in the Champions League Twenty20 for the KFC Twenty20 Big Bash finalists will be one of the main points of interest throughout the season, as will the confirmed participation of international stars Chris Gayle, Dwayne Bravo, Lasith Malinga and Ajantha Mendis," Sutherland said.

The Victorian Bushrangers and New South Wales Blues will not start their domestic campaigns until late October and early November respectively. Both teams will be involved in the Champions League Twenty20 tournament to be held from October 8-23 this year.

The domestic fixtures will also be supported by an increased level of TV coverage on Fox Sports, with an additional 10 matches on view compared to last season. "The new Fox Sports agreement is a great result for Australian cricket," Sutherland said. "Fox Sports' increased commitment, which includes coverage of women's matches, will mean more interstate cricket being televised than in previous years."