Queensland postpone T20 game due to floods

The Brisbane floods have forced Saturday's Big Bash match between Queensland and New South Wales at the Gabba to be postponed until January 24. A number of the Bulls players and families, including Ben Dunk, have been affected by the city's overflowing creeks and rivers, while Queensland Cricket's offices in Albion have been closed.

Dunk evacuated his apartment and stayed with his captain James Hopes while Ben Cutting tweeted this picture of the cricket club at Souths. Graham Dixon, Queensland Cricket's chief executive, said the decision to postpone the game took into account a range of problems.

"We faced issues with the public transport, with the fact that many people, including some of our players, would still be focused on getting back into their homes or cleaning up, and the likelihood that the usual police and security resources we rely on would be diverted to the recovery effort,'' he said. "While the venue was in good condition, and Kev Mitchell had done another wonderful job to have a wicket prepared, there were some solid logistical challenges for catering if we had staged a game."

Dixon said the "extraordinary circumstances" had affected sport and every other segment of the community. "The fund raising and assistance for the community is a focus for us all at the moment, and no doubt when we play the match it will be a welcome sign for many that things are on the way back to some sort of normality," he said.

James Sutherland, Cricket Australia's chief executive, said postponing the match was the best option. "Australian cricket is committed to providing assistance to our friends in Queensland and will continue to raise much-needed funds for the recovery effort," he said.