McGrath, Gillespie and Fleming back BBL privatisation but warn Test cricket must be protected
3 min readMay 18, 2026 12:20 PM IST Three of Australia’s popular fast bowlers have backed BBL privatisation as inevitable but warned Cricket Australia that Test cricket must be ringfenced from the fallout, speaking on the Fast Bowling Cartel podcast on Monday. Glenn McGrath, Jason Gillespie and Damian Fleming addressed the ongoing standoff between Cricket Australia and several state associations, with NSW and Queensland having already rejected CA’s initial proposal to sell stakes in BBL franchises to private investors.Gillespie, who recently coached Hyderabad Kings in the PSL, identified the core risk plainly. “Let’s say an IPL franchise comes in and buys one of the Big Bash teams,” he said. “They’ve signed Travis Head to a multi-million dollar contract. They want him playing Christmas Day or New Year’s Eve – and this coincides with test cricket. Does this change what the Boxing Day test, the New Year’s test looks like? I think a lot of these questions are being asked right now.” McGrath echoed those concerns. “Test cricket’s the ultimate. We need to protect test cricket,” …
