Maxwell & Pooran hit 49 in a two-over Power Surge vs Sixers - the highest for the season. ©Getty
Cricket Australia introduced three new rules ahead of the tenth edition of Big Bash League in an attempt to drive interest throughout the course of a T20 game and to add new strategic angles to the game in its entirety. Cricbuzz looks into how the rules have fared at the end of the season and if has they served their purpose.
Power Surge
The 'Power Surge' will consist of a two-over period where the fielding side is allowed only two fielders outside the inner ring. The batting side can take it at any given time from the 11th over of the innings onwards. Meanwhile, the Powerplay at the start of the innings has been reduced to four overs.
Thunder was the best batting side of the tournament by a distance and it reflected in the Power Surge stats. Thunder scored at 12.74 in the Power Surge overs which is well ahead of the second placed Scorchers. Renegades, the weakest batting side of the season, were the only side to score below 10 per over in Power Surge and their conservative approach is backed by the fact that they lost the fewest wickets in this phase (nine). In terms of economy rate, Scorchers were the best side conceding at 9.43 runs per over which gives them a rate differential (run rate - economy rate) of 2.64, the best among all sides in the season. Scorchers were closely followed by Stars who scored at 11.59 and conceded at 9.44 per over, giving them a positive differential of 2.15, second best behind Scorchers.
Despite this, Stars finished second last in the league phase and failed to qualify for the knockouts. Interestingly, Sixers who finished on top of the league phase and were the eventual champions has had the worst of Power Surge stats - they picked the second fewest wickets and had the worst economy rate while their run rate was only the fifth best, giving them a rate differential of -2.10, the worst among all teams.
Power Surge stats
| Team | Wkts lost | Run rate (RR) | Wkts taken | Eco rate (ER) | Diff (RR-ER) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scorchers | 11 | 12.06 | 15 | 9.43 | 2.64 |
| Stars | 14 | 11.59 | 21 | 9.44 | 2.15 |
| Thunder | 14 | 12.74 | 10 | 11.48 | 1.26 |
| Strikers | 14 | 10.01 | 14 | 10.45 | -0.44 |
| Hurricanes | 20 | 10.11 | 11 | 10.98 | -0.87 |
| Heat | 14 | 10.58 | 14 | 11.60 | -1.02 |
| Renegades | 9 | 9.04 | 12 | 10.58 | -1.53 |
| Sixers | 12 | 10.57 | 11 | 12.67 | -2.10 |
The two innings which saw the two highest Power Surge scores underlined the very purpose of the new concept. In the encounter between
