No Australian Cricket to be Played on Australia Day 2026

Adelaide Oval will host a 13th consecutive New Year's Eve clash in 2025. Picture: Getty Images.

Big Bash officials have once again baulked at putting a match on Christmas Day and will finish the 42-day tournament on the eve of Australia Day 2026.

With no Australian cricket scheduled on Australia Day, only a washout of the Big Bash final on January 25 could put cricket on January 26.

A December 14 start for the tournament has been locked in with a Boxing Day showdown between the Sydney Sixers and Melbourne Stars and a 13th consecutive News Year’s Eve clash in Adelaide among the fixture highlights.

Pakistan star Babar Azam looms as the headline international act this season, with several of his teammates, including speed demon Shaheen Shaf Afridi, joining the playing ranks.

An Ashes Test series will rob the Big Bash of the best Australian and English talent until the final two or three weeks of the tournament.

Cricket Australia hasn’t played on January 26 since 2023 and has refrained from any mention of Australia Day amid concerns from some players, including Indigenous women’s star Ash Gardner, about the implications of playing on a day that has different significance among Australians.

With Christmas Day also ruled out, the NBL remains the only Australian sporting league willing to take the plunge on that day.