Former Brisbane Heat captain Brendon McCullum believes adding a team based in New Zealand to the Big Bash League (BBL) in Australia would give the annual T20 event a different dimension and significantly boost its popularity amid fans either side of the Tasman sea. 

McCullum reckons this option shall definitely be on the table as Cricket Australia (CA) and the host broadcaster look to arrest the tournament's declining viewership, both on grounds and via television. 

Read Also: McCullum echoes Tendulkar's call to treat COVID-19 pandemic like a Test match 

"What an opportunity for the Big Bash if there’s a shortage of international cricket," McCullum told ‘SEN Radio’. “If we’re being honest, the Big Bash has tailed off a little bit in its following of late and what a great opportunity to really launch that back into Australian sporting fans’ eyes and what a great opportunity to bring a New Zealand team in the BBL."

The former Kiwi skipper also reckons the 'overseas' tag should be removed from all New Zealand players in order to make their participation in BBL 10 feasible. Australia is currently under a six-month lockdown, with no citizen from abroad allowed to enter the country amid COVID-19 pandemic. 

Last week, however, Australian officials granted 36 New Zealand rugby players and staff a rare exemption from the country’s ban on international arrivals.

"Perhaps you could even use New Zealand players as local players because there may be a distinct lack of overseas players who will want to travel, especially high-quality ones," McCullum said. "A little bit of creative thinking and another opportunity to get some New Zealanders across Tasman."

Both Australia and New Zealand are dealing with the health crisis much better than some of the other countries in the world, showing a significant dip in the number of positive cases. 

(Inputs from PTI)