The Sydney Cricket Ground could miss out on staging an Ashes Test with Australia officials pondering a switch to ANZ Stadium.
ANZ Stadium being considered by Cricket NSW
The final Test of the next Ashes series in Australia could be played at ANZ Stadium instead of its traditional home at the Sydney Cricket Ground.
Cricket New South Wales could be about to break with tradition and stage the final Test of the 2010/11 Ashes series at the host venue for the 2000 Olympics, with its capacity of 80,000, instead of the famous old SCG.
Test cricket has been played at the SCG since 1882 but Cricket NSW boss Dave Gilbert, who played nine Tests for Australia in the 1980s, has signalled 127 years of tradition may be about to end.
Cricket NSW's current deal with the SCG Trust expires in September 2010 and the Blues hierarchy has made no secret over its enthusiasm to spread the game west.
NSW have enjoyed great support at ANZ Stadium over the past two years, having taken Twenty20 games to Homebush.
Venue
"ANZ is focused on getting a major cricket match to its venue," Gilbert said. "I know Test cricket will be a difficult one to do at this stage - and you have to weigh up tradition and history and the drama at the SCG.
"But when I was a kid growing up at the SCG, rugby league Test matches and union Test matches were only ever at the SCG, but not anymore.
"If you're a 15-year-old kid, you've only ever known big sport events to be played at ANZ Stadium - that's not meant to be an inflammatory comment, it's a fact.
"If you take the heat and emotion out of it, as CEO of Cricket NSW, I have to do what is best for cricket to generate revenue to keep this game going, and this is what this process is about.
"This is what our negotiations will be about the next few months. It has to be recognised SCG and ANZ Stadium run a ground and we run a sport, we need each other and it's about working out best deal moving forward."
Asked if Ashes tradition would safeguard a move away from the SCG, Gilbert replied: "I can't make that guarantee because negotiations haven't begun and because they haven't it's not appropriate for me to make that comment.
"Logically you'd say yes (it's safe), but a lot depends on the manner in which negotiations are undertaken."
Katich shock
Australia opener Simon Katich said of a possible shift to ANZ Stadium: "It'd be a big shock but at the same time, who knows? At the moment it's up for renegotiation.
"The SCG is always going to hold a special place because of the history (and) some of our best Test memories are playing at the ground.
"It would be a surprise if there wasn't an Ashes Test at the SCG but who knows? The game's changing all the time, so you never know which direction it could head."
SCG Trust spokesman Greg Campbell said his organisation was confident of reaching an agreement with Cricket NSW to keep all major internationals at the ground.
"There has been no discussion with Cricket NSW at this stage so we're not sure what they're bringing to the table, but we look forward to all international cricket remaining at the SCG," he said.
