Tourism Australia is stepping up to the crease with a special instalment of its 'Come and Say G’day' campaign, rolling out Australian Test cricket captain Pat Cummins in a bid to reach as many as 50 million Indian cricket fans during the test series that kicks off tomorrow in Perth.

It's the first piece of work to land from the tourism body's new creative partnership with Accenture Song since, with Australian-based creative shop The Monkeys - soon to be Droga5 - leading the creative charge this time round. Accenture Song was named in July as Tourism Australia's new creative and digital agency of record following a prolonged, and highly competitive, pitch process.

The campaign is set to go live in India today and will run throughout the India during the Australia vs India test as it plays out in in Perth (22-26 Nov), Adelaide (6-10 Dec), Brisbane (14-18 Dec), Melbourne (26-30 Dec) and Sydney (3-7 Jan).

Cummins will star alongside Tourism Australia brand ambassador Ruby the Kangaroo in a series of 30, 15 and 6 second videos promoting Australian tourism destinations and experiences under the tagline 'Howzat for a holiday?'. The campaign assets will also be adapted and aired in the UK from 10 January 2025 for the Women’s Ashes and the Men’s Ashes series against England in November 2025.

Managing Director of Tourism Australia, Phillipa Harrison, said: “With a population of more than 1.4 billion people and more Indians looking to travel the potential in the Indian market is endless and we see the upcoming Test series as our chance to get on the front foot and promote our country to a captive TV audience.”

Harrison said the Test series was an "unmissable chance" to encourage Indian audiences "to visit Australia and see what we have to offer as a holiday destination".

“The aviation links between India and Australia have never been stronger, the market was one of the first to fully recover after the pandemic and, according to forecasts, the number of Indians travelling to Australia will double 2019 levels by 2028," she explained. “It will be a tough Test series for India on the field, but we are confident Indian travellers will still want to Come and Say G’day.”

The campaign follows Tourism Australia's release last week of a content series in India featuring recently retired Australian cricketer, David Warner, showcasing his favourite Australian holiday destinations.

Chief Marketing Officer at Tourism Australia, Susan Coghill, said: “Howzat for a holiday? proves the versatility of our brand ambassador Ruby the Kangaroo, who is once again voiced by the wonderful Rose Byrne. Ruby was at the centre of our global campaign when it launched two years ago and since then she has been central to all of our work including a campaign for the FIFA Women’s World Cup and now cricket.”

“We are so pleased to have been able to work with the Australian Test cricket captain Pat Cummins, Rose Byrne and also our new creative agency The Monkeys, part of Accenture Song, who have helped to create a uniquely Australian campaign that will resonate with audiences in India and the UK.

“This new creative is part of a whole range of activity around the Summer of Cricket. Ahead of the Test series we launched a four-part social media content series with David Warner, we followed that with the launch of Howzat for a holiday? and we will also be hosting a group of Bollywood talent here in Australia. All of this activity will run in India throughout the series to showcase Australia as a holiday destination.”

“This is now a proven formula and it is one we will execute once again with a push into England with localised creative during the Women’s and Men’s Ashes here in Australia next year.”

Managing Director at The Monkeys, part of Accenture Song, Matt Michael, said: “It has been a pleasure to begin our relationship with Tourism Australia by having this opportunity to work with them on their Summer of Cricket program. Cricket is such a classic part of the Australian summer experience, and nothing beats attending a live match.

"The campaign taps into the possibility of seeing sporting heroes like Pat Cummins in the flesh, enticing cricket fans in markets like India and the UK to indulge their passion for the sport while sampling the best of the Australian summer – a double treat. Over the coming months, we look forward to further building on the ‘Come and say G’Day’ platform to showcase Australia and persuade travellers from around the world to take a holiday Down Under.”