Prime Minister Julia Gillard has paid tribute to the late cricket great Tony Greig at a garden party for the Australian and Sri Lankan teams at Kirribilli House.
Addressing the teams and family members on the lawns overlooking Sydney Harbour on Tuesday, she said cricket was part of the Australian summer and teams like Sri Lanka were welcomed as friends each year.
“Which is why we feel losses in the cricketing family like the loss of Tony Greig very deeply,” she said.
“Australians really did individually think that they knew Tony and I’m sure that last night even as people were seeing in the New Year they were sparing a thought for his family at what is such a difficult time in their lives.
“But Tony, of all people, would have said the cricket’s got to go on and go on it will here in Sydney as we move to the Sydney game.”
Australia will play Sri Lanka in the third Test starting on Thursday at the Sydney Cricket Ground.
South African-born Greig, a former English Test team captain and Nine Network cricket commentator, died on Saturday aged 66 after suffering a massive heart attack.