Melbourne, Dec 30
The Boxing Day Test between India and Australia has set a new record for attendance figures in Tests in Australia, beating the previous record set in 1936/37 when Australia faced England in a six-day game.
During the lunch break of Day 5 play, 51,371 fans were in attendance at the MCG in anticipation of a grandstand finish to the match. Such was the rush of fans coming into the MCG to witness day five’s play that the stadium staff was scrambling around to make more arrangements around security, as well as food and beverage supplies.
“We’ve officially surpassed the attendance record set in 1936/37 when Australia faced England — a Test which spanned six days,” said the MCG through its ‘X’ account on Monday. "Thank you, Melbourne. An Australian cricketing record, an MCG record and history made," Cricket Australia said on its ‘X’ account.
Now, Cricket Australia (CA) has confirmed the final number at 74,362, with total attendance for the ongoing game standing at 373,691. It has now comfortably beaten the previous overall record of 350,534 spectators at the same ground during the 1936/37 Ashes series against England, when Donald Bradman made 270 in a six-day Test match.
“We’ve been blown away by the support of fans across the Boxing Day Test. Our partnership with the MCC and Victorian Government is a special one, and it’s been a great team effort to achieve this result.”
“The Border-Gavaskar Trophy is a blockbuster event, and it has been fantastic to see such strong attendances right across the summer. A big thank you to Australian cricket fans for your ongoing support of our great game. This demonstrates the power of cricket to bring communities together,” said Joel Morrisson, CA EGM Events and Operations, in a statement.
The attendance figure for the opening day of the ongoing Boxing Day Test stood at 87,242, which became a new record for the highest single match-day attendance in a Test match between the two teams. Day three’s play on Saturday attracted 83,073 fans, which set a new record for spectator attendance on the moving day of a Boxing Day Test match.
The record-breaking spectator attendances for the Boxing Day Test is attributed to a massive contingent of Indian fans flying in from all parts of the world and bringing in a carnival-like atmosphere at the MCG. The previous best record for overall attendance in a Boxing Day Test was 271,865 during the 2013/14 Ashes.