Cricket fans have expressed their sadness for Allan Border after it was revealed this week that none of the Test players will be in attendance at the Australian Cricket Awards in February to accept the medal named in his honour. For the first time since the Allan Border Medal was introduced in 2000, none of the country’s Test players will attend the prestigious awards ceremony due to the fact they’ll be in Sri Lanka.

The Australian Cricket Awards always take place in the vacant February window between the end of the Test summer and a tour overseas. But in 2025 the Aussie Test squad will be heading to Sri Lanka earlier than normal because the 50-over Champions Trophy is scheduled for the end of Feb in Pakistan, before the Indian Premier League kicks off in March.

The Australian Cricket Awards, which was formerly called the Allan Border Medal night until the female equivalent Belinda Clark Award was introduced, will take place on February 3. But the Test squad will already be in Sri Lanka because the first match actually starts on January 29.

It means for the first time in history, the winner of the Allan Border Medal (awarded to the best male Aussie cricket player of the year) won’t be in attendance to receive it. There’s an outside chance that someone not in the Test squad could win it, but because Test matches are given more weight than ODIs and T20s in the voting system, that seems unlikely.

Why can’t the Australian Cricket Awards be held earlier?

According to The Age, Cricket Australia held talks with the Australian Cricketers’ Association and broadcasters Channel 7 and Foxtel about holding the awards earlier. But the decision was made to leave it on February 3 because the women’s Ashes Test between Australia and England will take place from January 30 to February 2. The women’s Test could go a long way to deciding who wins the Belinda Clark Award.

Cricket Australia’s head of events Joel Morrison told The Age: “The difference this time will be the fact that the men’s Test team will be over in Sri Lanka. That’s really a reflection of the evolution of the global game and the increasing playing opportunities overseas while the awards are on.

“This is the first time where we literally haven’t been able to find a window where all players can be in the one location at the one time, without conflicting with a BBL game and still holding it in the thick of the cricket season as opposed to at the end of the season for club and state cricket in March. It’s the first time we haven’t been able to have the men’s Test team there, but we’ll have our Australian women’s team, WBBL and BBL players, and men’s white-ball players as well.”

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Alternatives were reportedly discussed, including a pre-recorded awards show in which the men’s Test players were present. But a solution couldn’t be reached, and players who aren’t in attendance will have to give pre-recorded speeches and reactions.

The situation has raised new concerns about how much cricket is being played, and the increasing demands on the world’s top players. David Warner and Michael Clarke have both previously bemoaned the fact the Australian Cricket Awards are compulsory, with Warner stating he’d prefer to be at home with family before flying out to India last year.

It’s also sparked sadness for Border that the winner of the medal named in his honour won’t be there to receive it in person. The Australian cricket legend is going through a well-documented battle with Parkinson’s Disease, adding to the unfortunate nature of the situation.