Lisa Griffith hopeful of playing a full-fledged WBBL

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Lisa Griffith to lead New South Wales

Lisa Griffith. © Getty Images

Lisa Griffith, New South Wales and Sydney Thunder allrounder, said she is hoping to be able to continue what has so far been an "unreal and lucky" Women's Big Bash League experience so far. Having been part of the Sydney Thunder squad for three seasons, she has had the opportunity to rub shoulder with and learn from several international superstars like Alex Blackwell, Shabnim Ismail, Stafanie Taylor, Rachael Haynes and Nida Dar.



With cricket having come to grinding halt due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Cricket Australia (CA) have been forced to explore various cost-cutting measures - one of which is likely to be a shortened WBBL. This could negatively impact a large group of domestic players in the country.



Coming off a hugely successful Women's T20 World Cup, the WBBL was meant to capitalise on the momentum gained by the sport in recent times. However, the pandemic has meant all international boards are staring at huge financial losses, forcing them to double down on cricket at the lower rungs.



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However, with no concrete plan announced, Griffith is hopeful that the competition can pick up where it left off after a wonderful last season. The 2019 edition of the tournament was the first every standalone women's competition and instantly became a hit with fans thronging to the grounds to watch their favourite female players. In fact, the final between Adelaide Strikers and Brisbane Heat was the highest rated sporting event on television that weekend.



"It's been unreal, we've been so lucky," Griffith, who has taken 11 wickets across her 29 WBBL matches, told Western Advocate. "It will be interesting to see this year what happens with the Big Bash, whether we align back with the men. I think it will all depend on what the next few months look like."







"The standalone tournament was massive last year to gain some traction and have the women on their own stage."



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With the tournament only meant to be played at the end of the year, Griffith is hopeful that CA are able to hold a full-fledged WBBL.







"It might be a bit of a silver lining, it might just be that come the end of this year, we might be the sport that everyone is looking forward to watching," she said.



"I'm really grateful that Australia have identified that we have made some real inroads in the last few years with the sport and the traction it has gained. So they've said they will do everything they can to keep that going."







"You never know what is going to happen, but I'm super keen for the Big Bash."













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