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AAP
AAP
Sport
Oliver Caffrey

Xmas Day BBL game still being considered

Players would be likely to push back over a Christmas Day BBL game, Perth's Jason Behrendorff says. (Rob Blakers/AAP PHOTOS) (AAP)

Cricket Australia is still exploring the possibility of a Christmas Day BBL fixture after the National Basketball League (NBL) went ahead with a match on December 25.

The Sydney Kings defeated Melbourne United in front of 7012 fans on Sunday night as the NBL became Australia's first professional sporting league to stage a game on the public holiday.

Cricket Australia chief executive Nick Hockley said a Christmas Day match in the BBL was still up for discussion.

The Hobart Hurricanes have made the Christmas Eve twilight timeslot their own at Blundstone Arena in recent years but December 25 continues to be a no-go zone for the BBL.

"We'll have a good look at the (NBL) game and it's something we will continue to talk about with players, with venues, and we've got a pretty open mind to it," Hockley said outside the MCG ahead of the Boxing Day Test on Monday.

"It is a very full cricket calendar.

"The Big Bash is unlike a footy season where you play each weekend, these guys are playing one game every two or three days.

"It's one thing we will continue to talk about.

"We will look at it and have a good discussion about it at the end of the season."

Last week, Australia's Twenty20 World Cup-winning captain from 2021, Aaron Finch, said he believed a BBL fixture on Christmas Day was inevitable.

But Perth Scorchers paceman Jason Behrendorff felt the majority of players remained opposed to such a move.

Finch predicted a Christmas Day fixture would "eventually" feature on the BBL schedule, potentially drawing a large TV audience.

Behrendorff - a Western Australia player-delegate for the Australian Cricketers' Association - said there would be opposition.

"I'd love to just be able to spend that day with my family and enjoy the festivities of Christmas," Behrendorff said last week.

"It's really hard to speak for everyone, but I think that would be the general consensus at this stage.

"Through our players' association we have good discussions with (Cricket Australia) about when we can have input into structures and schedules and things like that.

"We certainly make sure that we voice our opinion, because there's no point sitting silent and then complaining if something doesn't go your way."

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