Canberra ready for Indian summer, Big Bash bubble

Cricket ACT has been working feverishly with government and health officials since Manuka Oval was locked in for two December internationals to assure Canberra is ready to host the world's biggest cricketing nation amidst strict bio security regulations.

Kohli's team lands in Sydney on Thursday, along with Australian IPL stars Steve Smith, David Warner and Pat Cummins.

Two weeks of mandatory quarantine will follow before the international summer schedule begins, and India will spend the time training for a fortnight inside a tight bubble at Blacktown in Sydney's west.

Their last day of quarantine will be November 26, a day before the first of two one-day internationals in Sydney.

That series reaches a crescendo on December 2 in Canberra with Manuka Oval to host a potential decider.

India will take a coach from Sydney to Canberra on November 30, and will be permitted to train at Manuka on the first of December.

A series-opening T20 clash with Australia will be played on December 4 before India departs the following day for Sydney for the second and third matches in that series.

Both Canberra fixtures will be broadcast live around the world, opening the capital up to a billion-plus audience of cricket fans from the Subcontinent.

"To be beamed throughout the world, there'll be literally billions of eyes on the set watching Manuka, it's a great chance to show what an amazing facility it is," Cricket ACT chief James Allsopp said.

"It's a great chance to show the vibrancy of Canberra in the summer.

"Some of the most iconic pictures I've seen of Manuka Oval is the sunset in the background, the nice beautiful orange sky and that puts us on the page in terms of being a real global city.

"It's important to have those relationships with those vibrant markets overseas in south-east Asia."

The two internationals kick off a blockbuster December for Allsopp's team which will host eight cricket matches in 28 days.

Canberra will also be used as a Big Bash mini hub, housing the city's adopted Sydney Thunder, plus the Melbourne Stars and Brisbane Heat for the opening weeks of the BBL summer.

Sydney Thunder will play five matches at Manuka as part of a 28-day stint in Canberra which will also be under strict bubble conditions.

Big Bash teams in the capital will be subject to the strictest possible virus protocols, but they could be relaxed depending on any potential further easing of virus restrictions.

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All our plans at this stage is that it's a really tight bubble," Allsopp said.

"The plans are all put in place so they're as tight as need to be if COVID was to get worse, but we can loosen them if we get the appropriate authorisations from the health authorities.

"We'd like them to experience the city, and get out to some cafes and things like that.

"We don't want to keep people stuck in hotels and cricket grounds for such long periods of time if we can avoid it but if that's what we need to do to deliver the summer and keep it safe, that's what we'll do."

Allsopp said the summer would give Manuka Oval another opportunity to show itself worthy of annual international cricket.

"The last two years we've delivered a really iconic Test match in Canberra where day two was the only sold out day of the entire Test summer, last year the women's World Cup, the game between Australia and Bangladesh was the third highest crowd for the World Cup," Allsopp said.

Meanwhile, Kohli has raised concerns about the mental toll players are likely to suffer should they be subjected to unbroken periods in virus bubbles.

"These things will have to be considered," Kohli told Royal Challengers Bangalore TV."

"At the end of the day, you want the players to be in the best state mentally and physically.

"Mentally it can be taxing if this continues for this long a period."

Kohli is one of several players who will come out of the Indian Premier League bubble, and straight into an Australian summer involving six short-form games and a four-match Test series.