Cricket Australia chair Mike Baird and chief executive Todd Greenberg say they did not approve Cricket Victoria’s plan to merge the Melbourne Stars and Melbourne Renegades to free up a Big Bash League licence for sale to private investors. Multiple reports say the claims arise from a key meeting involving state officials who say they were caught off guard by the proposal and its handling. The outlets report that Baird and Greenberg deny authorising the approach, disputing accounts that Cricket Australia had backed the move that would restructure teams and enable the licence to be offered to private ownership.
The reporting centres on the question of who approved or supported Cricket Victoria’s proposal and whether Cricket Australia leadership gave the plan the necessary endorsement. While the articles describe state chiefs as blindsided, they do not provide additional detail on the substance of the merger plan or the status of any licence sale beyond the allegation that the restructuring would be used to make a BBL licence available. The dispute remains focused on denial of approval by Cricket Australia’s top officials.
