In the match between Brisbane Heat and Hobart Hurricanes in the ongoing Big Bash League (BBL), a 5-year-old child suffering from brain cancer assisted in ‘bat flip’ to start the game on Thursday at the Gabba in Brisbane.
Slater Walker is a huge fan of Brisbane Heat and was called by the team management to the stadium as a guest of honour. A video of Walker flipping the bat was shared on the official Twitter handle of BBL.
“Assisting with the bat flip tonight is 5yo Slater Walker. Unfortunately, Slater is suffering from brain cancer, but is a massive @HeatBBL fan and is the guest of honour at the Gabba tonight. Enjoy the match, Slater,” BBL tweeted.
Assisting with the bat flip tonight is 5yo Slater Walker. Unfortunately, Slater is suffering from brain cancer, but is a massive @HeatBBL fan and is the guest of honour at the Gabba tonight.
Enjoy the match, Slater! 🙏 #BBL09 https://t.co/vudQK7bN5z
— KFC Big Bash League (@BBL) January 9, 2020
Notably, the normal coin toss has been done away and replaced with bat flip in the BBL. Instead of heads or tails, the captains call hills or flats of the bat to decide which team will perform which action in the first innings.
The home team captain flip the bat, while the visiting captain gets to make the call. The only condition in the entire process is that the bat must make one complete rotation before landing.
The bat flip is a normal phenomenon in backyard cricket but it is new and unique in the professional level. It was tried in BBL in 2018 for the first time and has been followed ever since.