The BBL could soon feature its own version of the AFL's western derby after the city of Fremantle joined the race to be part of Australian cricket's Twenty20 league.
A Fremantle-based consortium announced details of its bid to join the BBL on Thursday, with the team named the Fremantle Breeze.
Western derbies between arch AFL rivals Fremantle and West Coast have become one of the biggest drawcards on WA's sporting calendar.
Now, the Fremantle Breeze bid team want to bring the cross-town rivalry to T20 cricket.
As part of the ambitious plan, the Breeze would be based at Fremantle Oval, which is aiming to undergo a $20 million redevelopment once the Dockers move to their new training base in Cockburn.
The Breeze, who aren't affiliated to the Dockers, would play most of their home matches at Fremantle Oval.
But the derbies against the Perth Scorchers would be played at the new Perth Stadium, which can seat 60,000 people.
The BBL currently features eight franchises, and there are no concrete plans to expand the competition just yet.
As it stands, only Sydney and Melbourne feature multiple teams in the same city.
Scorchers paceman Mitchell Johnson was torn about the prospect of introducing another BBL franchise into the WA market.
"You've got your Sydney and Melbourne teams who definitely have the players. Maybe Perth's a bit too small, and Fremantle's a bit too small," Johnson said.
"The whole point of this tournament is it's entertaining, and you want to see the best players playing the game.
"You don't just want to bring in sub-standard players. You want to have top players playing.
"But if it can fit them in, I don't see a problem. I think it would be great for Perth and Fremantle.
"Why not have a crack?"
