Justin Langer loves Manuka Oval and if the Australia coach had his way it would become a permanent part of the international cricketing landscape.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
But discussions are ongoing between Cricket Australia and the ACT government on a new deal to keep elite cricket in the capital.
They're looking at a six-year deal with the Sydney Thunder for Big Bash League games at Manuka and a four-year deal for international fixtures.
Cricket ACT chief executive James Allsopp was hopeful a deal would be finalised before one of the remaining big games in Canberra - potentially the upcoming WBBL or BBL games in the next six weeks.
Langer was full of praise for everything about Manuka - the surface, the pitch, the stadium - all except the cold weather, which the West Australian wasn't a fan of.
He felt the batsman-friendly pitch played a role in Steve Smith's brilliant 80 not out off 51 balls.
Langer was also adamant more internationals should come Canberra's way.
"Yeah, where we can. It's just a brilliant stadium. It's just beautiful. You walk out and it's like carpet," he said.
"The wicket's always good. It's a beautiful venue. It's a bit cold. Every who knows me knows I don't like the cold very much.
"But overall it's a great place. We love coming to play here. We loved the Test match last year."
Next year India are a major player in the summer - playing three Twenty20 games in the lead up to the men's T20 World Cup, then four Tests and three one-day internationals.
Afghanistan are also scheduled to play a Test in Australia.
Manuka hosted its first Test last summer, while Australia played there for the first time during Canberra's centenary in 2013.
It's seen the Australian team return to the ACT every summer except when England came Down Under to play for the Ashes.
Discussions for a new deal have been ongoing with Allsopp hopeful they could be finalised in the coming weeks.
Manuka will host a WBBL game between the Thunder and Melbourne Stars on November 21.
Then there's two BBL games - Thunder against the Adelaide Strikers on December 21 and Thunder versus Melbourne Renegades on January 15 - with a series of Women's T20 internationals wrapping up the summer.
"Negotiations are continuing and I'm hoping during one of the big games this summer we can actually announce a longer term deal," Allsopp said.
"I think [Tuesday] night and all the comments Justin made are a real showcase for why it's so beneficial to come to Canberra with such great conditions and arguably the best boutique stadium in Australia.
"If there was any doubt whether there should be elite cricket played in Canberra on a long-term basis I think that was dispelled [Tuesday] night."