by bigfluffylemon » Tue Jan 26, 2021 11:32 pm
So, after all that, you have to ask, was the Bash Boost a success?
I have no idea what it was intended to accomplish by way of making play more dynamic/interesting. Looking at the stats, it appears that in 53 of the 56 matches, the winning side secured the Boost point anyway. It's not at all surprising that more often than not the side ahead at the halfway point in the innings went on to win, but 95% of games? The conclusion seems to be that it's somewhat pointless, or that we should just play T10, as the winner has been determined by 10 overs anyway. It also ended the Sixers/Stars as a meaningful contest after eight overs of the Sixers' chase last night, as once Sixers had secured the point, the winner of the game would have no impact on the table. That said, it's quite impressive that only 12 overs of the whole tournament were dead. Usually I'd expect a few dead rubbers at the end. The expansion of finals to 5 from 4, contrived as it is, probably helps there.
Of the three games the boost point not going to the winner impacted, only one had an impact on the table. Had it been just 4 points for a win, 2 for a no result and ties decided by NRR, Hurricanes would have gone through instead of the Heat, with 7 wins apiece (Strikers had 7 wins too, but the best NRR of the three, so go through either way). The only other impact it could have had was the position of Scorchers v Thunder, but with 8 wins apiece the Scorchers would have finished higher anyway on account of one no-result.