The seventh edition of the Women’s National Cricket League (WNCL) T20 will begin on October 28, with eight divisional teams set to compete in a 28-match tournament in Cox’s Bazar.
An official from the Bangladesh Cricket Board’s (BCB) women’s wing confirmed the development to TIMES, saying the tournament will follow a single round-robin format, with each team facing every other team once, as in the previous edition.
“There will be 28 matches throughout the tournament. All matches will be played in Cox’s Bazar. The team which gains the most points will be crowned champion,” the official said.
Each team will play seven matches, with no separate final. The team finishing at the top of the points table after the round-robin stage will be declared champion.
Barishal are the defending champions after winning the previous edition.
The players’ auction, scheduled for September 26, will follow a BCB qualification and screening process to finalise the eligible player pool and ensure balance among the eight divisional squads.
The official said, “The auction on the 26th will actually be a qualifying and player selection process designed to balance the squads, as some divisions have more players available than others. Each team will have two icon players, as they did last season. The 16 icons from the eight divisions, along with divisional representatives, will select batters and bowlers in turns through a lottery system.”
The BCB has also approved a revised match-fee structure for women’s domestic cricket. Players will receive Tk20,000 per T20 match, Tk30,000 for a one-day match and Tk40,000 for a three-day match.
The revised fees will apply to women’s domestic competitions as the board continues to strengthen the domestic structure for female cricketers.
