The starriest night in Australian cricket is set to be void of a galaxy of stars.
The latest edition of the Australian Cricket Awards, cricket's equivalent of the Brownlow Medal night or the Dally M Awards, will be held at Crown Melbourne on Monday night.
But the prestigious ceremony, where the Allan Border Medal and Belinda Clark Award are set to be presented, will go ahead without the squad of men's players currently in Sri Lanka for Test matches.
Among the contenders for the Allan Border Medal are Travis Head, Steve Smith and Mitchell Starc, all of whom are in Galle preparing for the second Test of the series.
Pat Cummins didn't travel to Sri Lanka, having decided to stay in Australia for the birth of his second child, but Wide World of Sports has learned the Test and one-day international captain, and another potential winner of the Allan Border Medal, will also miss the awards night.
Australia usually doesn't go on an overseas Test tour until February or later, but the ongoing Sri Lanka tour was locked in for earlier dates due to the 50-over Champions Trophy, to be held in Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates between February 19 and March 9.
Australia celebrates its win over Sri Lanka in the first Test. Getty
The Sydney Morning Herald reported in December that Cricket Australia had discussed the scheduling conflict between the awards night and the Sri Lanka tour with the Australian Cricketers Association and the broadcasters of the event, before a decision was made to hold the ceremony after the end of the women's Ashes Test at the MCG, which wrapped up on Saturday.
The scheduling clash is a reflection of the increasingly saturated global cricket landscape, which is inundated with international cricket across all formats, domestic T10 and T20 leagues, and other new-age tournaments such as the UK's The Hundred.
The winner of the 2024 Allan Border Medal, all-rounder Mitchell Marsh. Getty Images for Cricket Austral
Once the extraordinary amount of cricket that's played has been jammed into the calendar, there's only finite opportunity for events such as the Australian Cricket Awards to be scheduled optimally, or indeed no opportunity at all.
Here's everything you need to know about the Australian Cricket Awards for 2025:
When will the Australian Cricket Awards be held?
Australian cricket's night of nights will get under way at 7pm (AEDT) on Monday, February 3 and wrap up around 8.30pm.
Where will the awards night be held?
The ceremony, a black-tie function, will take place in Crown Melbourne's Palladium room.
Allan Border poses next to the Allan Border Medal during the 2024 Australian Cricket Awards. Getty Images for Cricket Austral
How is the Allan Border Medal decided?
The top individual honour in Australian men's cricket draws upon performances across Test, ODI and T20 international cricket.
The latest voting period for the Allan Border Medal began with the home Test series against the West Indies in January 2024 and concluded with the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, which ended last month.
Players, umpires and members of the media vote after each game on a 3-2-1 basis, with Test votes worth double those earned in ODIs and triple those from T20Is.
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Australian cricket's top awards through the years: Steve Smith gunning for record fifth AB Medal
Who are the contenders for the Allan Border Medal?
Travis Head is a hot favourite to win what would be his maiden Allan Border Medal, having chalked up 1427 runs across all formats within the voting period.
Head amassed 621 more runs than the next highest run-scorer, Steve Smith, who compiled 806.
The dangerous left-hander averaged 42.24 during the eligibility period, which is particularly impressive given more than half of his 29 matches were T20Is.
He also plundered four centuries: his knock of 119 against the West Indies in Adelaide, an unbeaten 154 in an ODI against England at Trent Bridge, and his hundreds against India in Adelaide and Brisbane.
Among the other Allan Border Medal contenders are Smith, Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood.
Smith could win for a record-breaking fifth time.
Limited-overs leg-spinner Adam Zampa, who featured in the most matches throughout the voting period with a total of 31, is a smokey.
Pat Cummins receives the Border-Gavaskar Trophy from Allan Border in January. Getty
Who are the past winners of the Allan Border Medal?
Glenn McGrath (2000), Steve Waugh (2001), Matthew Hayden (2002), Adam Gilchrist (2003), Ricky Ponting (2004, 2006, 2007, joint winner 2009), Michael Clarke (2005, joint winner 2009, 2012, 2013), Brett Lee (2008), Shane Watson (2010, 2011), Mitchell Johnson (2014), Steve Smith (2015, 2018, 2021, 2023), David Warner (2016, 2017, 2020), Pat Cummins (2019), Mitchell Starc (2022), Mitchell Marsh (2024)
How is the Belinda Clark Award decided?
The top individual gong in Australian women's cricket is decided just like the Allan Border Medal.
Performances across Tests, ODIs and T20Is are factored, with players, umpires and members of the media voting after each match on a 3-2-1 basis, and Tests holding double the worth of ODIs and triple the worth of T20Is.
The latest voting period for the Belinda Clark Award was January 10, 2024 to February 2, 2025.
Who are the contenders for the Belinda Clark Award?
The leading candidates are Ashleigh Gardner, Annabel Sutherland and Beth Mooney, while an outside chance is Georgia Wareham.
Sutherland capped off the eligibility period in remarkable fashion, scoring 163 against England to become the first woman to make a Test century at the MCG.
Annabel Sutherland raises her bat at the MCG. Getty
What's the full list of awards to be presented?
Allan Border Medal
Belinda Clark Award
Shane Warne Men's Test Player of the Year
Men's One-Day International Player of the Year
Women's T20I Player of the Year
Men's T20I Player of the Year
Women's One-Day International Player of the Year
BBL Player of the Tournament
Men's Domestic Cricketer of the Year
Women's Domestic Cricketer of the Year
Bradman Male Young Cricketer of the Year
Betty Wilson Female Young Cricketer of the Year
