Sports Minister Rita Saffioti is confident a strong crowd will flock to Optus Stadium to see Australia take on New Zealand in the first Test of the home summer, despite the game being fixtured to begin on a Wednesday.
Australia’s series against the Black Caps will come in the midst of a jam-packed run of fixtures for the side, leaving only a tight window for it to be played.
A start date of Wednesday, December 9 means if this year’s contest in Perth runs for only two days — as the opening Test of the Ashes did last summer — it will not reach the weekend.
Speaking 50 days out from the start of the Perth Test on Tuesday, Saffioti said the game had attracted plenty of interest from local, interstate and international fans.
“Of course we want to have it mainly over the weekend, so we’ll see how we go,” Saffioti said.
“West Australians love their Test cricket. We’ve seen it on weekdays be packed out.
“What you’ll find is a lot of people will take leave, other people will make arrangements to get here, so we expect some good attendances, because Test cricket has made a huge comeback.”
December’s Test will mark the completion of a three-year agreement between the State Government and Cricket Australia ensuring the first red-ball game of the summer has been staged in Perth.
Saffioti said the State Government had “put forward a strong case” to continue the arrangement.
“We’re negotiating with Cricket Australia now. We’ve been very proactive on this,” she said.
“In particular, our location makes it very sensible to (host) the first Test. Not that you can always guarantee weather, but I do believe our weather is a much better prospect than Brisbane at that time of year.”
As has been the case in the last two years, an interactive fan festival will be staged outside Optus Stadium as the Test match is played.