Canberra smoke haze forces BBL game to stop

Canberra's smoke haze hit Manuka Oval like a freight train to force an early end to a BBL clash and see Sydney and the Adelaide Strikers split points on Saturday.

Conditions had been clear before the venue was blanketed in smoke within minutes during the second innings to leave the Thunder and Strikers four balls short of a what constitutes a game.

It left Sydney stranded on 1-40 after 4.2 overs - with five overs the mark required to make a game - requiring a further 122 from 94 balls in pursuit of Adelaide's 5-161.

The Thunder's total of 40 runs was enough to win the game, provided they didn't lose a flurry of wickets later in the over, in a cruel blow which ends their unbeaten start to the season.

But if ever the Thunder were concerned about the smoke haze which threatened to derail their return to Canberra, the tape wrapped around their left sleeves put it all into perspective.

The Thunder wore black armbands in memory of late firefighters Geoffrey Keaton and Andrew O'Dwyer during their clash with the Strikers.

The two NSW Rural Fire Service volunteers died when their truck rolled while on their way to battle the Green Wattle Creek blaze.

"You always want to do what you can to get a game in. We were in the box seat to get those points so it's easy to say that when you're in that position," Bond said.

"There's some challenges for Cricket Australia and the BBL, and ultimately you just want to get it right so the fans don't get sick.

"We thought you could finish a game [based on visibility] ... but the air quality was poor, people went down in the stands.

"The fact you drop a point is not anything compared to what other people are going through. You've got to stop to take a breath and say losing a point is not the same as losing your house."

A crowd of 5556 turned out, with the haze and threat of a storm seeing the game fall well short of an anticipated 10,000.

The air quality index hit 1164 in Florey, with Canberra once hitting seven times above the "hazardous" threshold on a scorching 41 degree day, which eclipsed the mark set two days prior for the capital's hottest December day on record.

But the thick haze held off long enough for Daniel Sams to get the contest underway with the ball - and he claimed the scalp of Phil Salt with his fourth delivery.

Adelaide fell to 2-9 before Jake Weatherald (42) and Alex Carey (45) steadied, then Jon Wells carried the torch with 55* (32).

Soon frustrated Thunder captain Callum Ferguson was forced off, unbeaten on 27 (14) alongside Alex Hales (11 from 10), so close yet so far from a result.

"It was probably the right decision, best for the health and safety of everyone at the ground. It came across pretty quick," Wells said.

"All of a sudden it was very bad, we had a couple of guys struggling a bit. [Peter Siddle] was one in particular I know was having a few issues. It didn't pass over."

It makes the night snow fell on Manuka Oval during the GWS Giants' AFL clash with the Hawthorn Hawks in August feel like a lifetime ago.

Perhaps those "historic Manuka Oval is smoke free" signs spread around the concourse need to be revisited.

AT A GLANCE

Big Bash League: ADELAIDE STRIKERS 5-161 (Jon Wells 55*, Alex Carey 45; Daniel Sams 2-21, Chris Morris 2-31) v SYDNEY THUNDER 1-40 (Callum Ferguson 27*, Alex Hales 11*; Billy Stanlake 1-8) at Manuka Oval. Crowd: 5556.