Perth Scorchers will begin their upcoming Big Bash League campaign with a historic season opener in India.

The Big Bash League confirmed on Friday the club’s defence of their sixth title would start at Chennai’s MA Chidambaram Stadium against Melbourne Renegades.

The game will be played on Saturday, December 12 and is scheduled to begin after the conclusion of what is set to be the fourth day of Australia’s series-opening Test match against New Zealand at Optus Stadium.

Crucially, the Scorchers will not lose a home match by heading to India. Nominal hosting rights for the game will be held by the Renegades, who have been put into ‘caretaker mode’ by Cricket Victoria for this season as part of a hugely-controversial planned operational merger with the Melbourne Stars.

Earlier in the day, the Renegades announced they had left their traditional home grounds of Marvel Stadium and Geelong’s GMHBA Stadium.

WA Cricket chief executive John Stephenson said the occasion would be “genuinely historic”.

“We have players who already resonate deeply with Indian fans throughout their Indian Premier League experiences, and this fixture gives the whole club an invaluable chance to connect with millions of new supporters,” Stephenson said.

“Protecting our home schedule, however, was a priority. We head to Chennai with excitement, and come home to the full suite of five regular season home games our members and fans deserve.”

The Scorchers’ newly-appointed general manager Kade Harvey said the club’s players were up for the challenge.

“To open the season in front of what could be the most-watched game in the history of Australian domestic sport is an incredible privilege, and one the group will embrace,” Harvey said.

“Equally important to us is that we return home with a strong footprint at Optus Stadium, a ground where we have played some of the best cricket in this competition’s history.

“Keeping that competitive advantage is central to how we defend our title, and planning is well underway for another exciting campaign.”

Scorchers star Ashton Agar said the opportunity to play a BBL game overseas was “really exciting”.

“They’re the most passionate fans by a mile . . . there’s no greater feeling than walking into a packed stadium in India,” Agar said.

“It’s a wonderful product already, but to grow our game in front of 1.4 billion people, I think it’s a really special thing.

“It’s a beautiful experience, playing in India . . . everyone wants to say hello to you, everyone is respectful, and that’s just all to do with their culture. They are lovely, kind, respectful people, and we get to feel the top level of that as cricketers, which is something you definitely don’t take for granted.”

While the club’s players will need to confront a 12-hour flight to feature in the fixture, The West Australian understands they will be granted a week-long break to rest before their second game once they return to Australia.

Alongside his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi at the MCG, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the game would form a key pillar of strengthened sporting ties between the countries.

“There is a decade of opportunity ahead of us for more friendly rivalry, serious contests, and increased cooperation right across the board,” Albanese said.

India is far and away the biggest broadcast market in the cricket world and it is anticipated the contest may draw the largest television audience of any domestic Australian sporting game.

Perth had always shaped as a likely candidate to feature in the fixture due to the west coast’s closer proximity to South Asia than the eastern seaboard.

In May, The West Australian revealed WA Cricket were enthusiastically pursuing the opportunity to play in the historic game and were in the process of building a case to take to Cricket Australia.

Shifting the season opener to India comes as the BBL continues to navigate a protracted and controversial debate around the prospect of inviting private investment into clubs.

For his part, Agar declared he was “pro-privatisation” and he saw it as “inevitable”.

“To have outside views, I think people can be afraid of that sometimes, but those outside views might be extremely intelligent. You might get access to some incredible people who help grow our game bigger and bigger and secure our spot as one of the great leagues in the world for many years to come,” he said.