Canberra is set to save the Big Bash League for a second time this summer with Manuka Oval expected to feature in Cricket Australia's amended fixture announcement on Friday morning.
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Recent border closures stemming from Sydney's pre-Christmas COVID-19 outbreak have left BBL organisers scrambling to find an alternative to a schedule which included eight matches in the Harbour City, beginning with a Thunder-Sixers derby on January 13.
That could mean the Sydney derby is played at Manuka Oval for the first time in history - a venue the Thunder have already graced five times this season.
Manuka's widely heralded centre wicket was under covers on Thursday afternoon, ready to be prepared at a moment's notice should the capital be called upon once more.
It hosted six fixtures in December as the ACT joined Tasmania as a key Big Bash hub, allowing the tournament to begin under stringent biosecurity protocols.
Thunder players spent most of December, including Christmas, in the capital before heading to Queensland for two fixtures.
They are currently in Perth with a clash against the Hobart Hurricanes on Thursday night preceding Saturday's match with the Scorchers.
The Sixers, meanwhile, flew to the Gold Coast on Thursday afternoon after Wednesday night's hammering by the Scorchers in Perth. Their next assignment is against the Brisbane Heat on Sunday.
Were either the Sixers or Thunder to set foot Sydney ahead of the January 13 derby, it would compromise their ability to enter other states in the latter stages of the tournament, when Cricket Australia is still believed to be keen to play matches in Melbourne.
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Neither Sydney or Melbourne have seen any BBL action so far this season while only Hobart, with eight matches, has hosted more Big Bash than Canberra this summer.
Adelaide has also been slated as a logical BBL hub for the remainder of the tournament, with the South Australian border still open to Victoria, Queensland, Western Australia and Tasmania.
Just how many more matches Manuka Oval will host this season remains to be seen.
The Sixers were due to host Perth at the SCG on January 16, while the Thunder had a home game against Hobart scheduled two days later, before another Sydney derby on January 22, plus a back-to-back engagement against Adelaide on January 24-25.
James Buckley
James is a Queanbeyan boy enjoying his second stint at the Canberra Times, more than eight years on from his first. In between he's traveled the world, and spent time covering sport in Sydney.
James is a Queanbeyan boy enjoying his second stint at the Canberra Times, more than eight years on from his first. In between he's traveled the world, and spent time covering sport in Sydney.
