The Big Bash is getting a new rule for BBL|16. Teams can name a “designated batter” — a player who only bats, never bowls or fields. If they do, they must also name a “designated fielder”, who only fields but never bowls. Captains decide at the bat flip, and the rule is fully optional.
The idea is simple: keep big names on the park. Ageing stars can bat without fielding. Tired Test players like Travis Head could play BBL without the injury risk of 20 overs in the outfield.
Even Ricky Ponting is split. He’d have felt “embarrassed” not fielding in his day, but he backs it, because it could keep internationals in the tournament longer.
This is not the BBL’s first experiment. The X-Factor rule died after 2021-22 because teams hardly used it. The new version is simpler: one call at the bat flip, no mid-game maths. It borrows from the IPL’s Impact Player, but neither designated player can bowl.
You’ll see it first at the Chennai opener on December 12 — a first for BBL matches outside Australia too.
Also: slow over-rates now bring full powerplay restrictions, and the new rule is men’s BBL only — the WBBL skips it.
Is the designated batter rule mandatory?
No. Teams choose at the bat flip.
Can the designated fielder bowl?
No. They can field and keep wicket, but not bowl.
Last verified: 12 October 2026