Modi-Albanese sports diplomacy: Australia to hold Big Bash League’s opening match in India

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Friday announced that the opening match of the upcoming season of T-20 tournament Big Bash League will be held in India. This will bring the Big Bash League to India for the first time.

Albanese visited the Melbourne cricket stadium with Prime Minister Narendra Modi to launch the India-Australia Sports Collaboration Roadmap. He made the announcement about the Big Bash League on the sidelines of the launch.

Albanese further said that the opening match will be part of the week-long 'G'day Namaste' Festival of Australian Sport, Culture and Business Engagement.

"I announce that Australia will bring the Big Bash League to India for the first time. The season opener for this summer's Big Bash between the Melbourne Renegades and the Perth Scorchers will be played in Chennai on Saturday, 12 December. It will kick off a week-long 'G'day Namaste' Festival of Australian Sport, Culture and Business Engagement. There will be a senior business delegation led by the Business Council of Australia, building on the economic roadmap that we launched just last year. Today, we recognise that in both our countries sport is a serious business as well," said Albanese.

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The two leaders described the India-Australia Sports Collaboration Roadmap as a means to strengthen long-standing India-US sporting partnership.

"This roadmap will support practical cooperation in areas such as sports science and staging major sporting events, as well as broader opportunities in trade, tourism and investment. It will also build on new growing areas of shared passion," said Albanese.

The two leaders also highlighted the string of major international tournaments that India and Australia will host in the coming years and said it gave the two countries a unique opportunity for healthy competition and shared growth.

"With India hosting the 2030 Commonwealth Games, Australia hosting the 2032 Olympics and India bidding for the 2036 Olympics, which I'm certain Australia will support, there is a decade of opportunity ahead of us for more friendly rivalry, serious contests, and increased cooperation right across the board," said Albanese, with Modi adding that hosting an event in India guarantees extensive reach and viewership.

"Sports infrastructure will be developed on a mega scale to host these global events... I am delighted that a Big Bash League match will be held in Chennai, India. For any sporting league," Modi further said.