Source: Prime Minister of Australia
ANTHONY ALBANESE, PRIME MINISTER OF AUSTRALIA: Well, Prime Minister Modi, welcome back to the sacred turf of the Melbourne Cricket Ground. The birthplace of Test cricket, the home of Australian Rules Football, and the scene of so many famous contests between Australia and India. Just two years ago, Australian and Indian fans broke an attendance record that was 90 years old. Over five days, 370,000 people came through these gates to watch the fourth Test of the Border-Gavaskar series. That is the passion and the respect between our rivalry. And it is a great honour to be joined here by two legends of Australian cricket, who are both admired and revered in India too, Lisa Sthalekar and Steve Waugh. As a player and captain, Steve Waugh was famous for breaking free at the hotel bubble and getting out and experiencing the real India that won him so much respect and affection among the Indian people. Back then, Steve was an exception, not anymore. These days that connection between players and coaches from both our countries is much more the norm, and we are so much better for it. Lisa’s remarkable life journey from Pune to captaining Australia is another example of that bond. That is the power of sport. It breaks down our differences and it brings us together, and we’re here today to build on that. Today, 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, the 12th of December, and 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. And today we recognise that in both our countries sport is a serious business as well. That’s why Prime Minister Modi and I are here to launch a roadmap for sport collaboration between Australia and India to strengthen our longstanding 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, and that brings me to footy. A few years ago, there were 150 people in India playing Australian Rules football. Today there are 10,000 players across 11 states, and I know that the AFL are big believers in that growth, and they’re investing in it. This exchange of sporting cultures goes both ways, as we saw when India brought Kabaddi here to Melbourne in 2024. And 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. I’ll introduce Prime Minister Modi to address you now.
< SHRI NARENDRA MODI, PRIME MINISTER OF INDIA