Incredible scenes as 87-year-old record is broken at the Boxing Day Test
- India are chasing 334 for victory in a see-saw match
- Pat Cummins opted not to start day five
The enthralling battle between Australia and India in Melbourne has broken the all-time attendance record for an MCG Test, breaking the record that stood at 87 years during Don Bradman’s prime.
While the stage was set for a classic on day five, 51,371 spectators were already packed into the ground at lunchtime on Monday for what promises to be a gripping conclusion to an already fascinating match.
The total attendance of 350,700 is the largest for any Test match in Australia.
It exceeds the six-day total of 350,534 against England in 1937, when Bradman was the king of cricket.
“We have been overwhelmed by the support from fans during the Boxing Day Test,” Cricket Australia events and operations boss Joel Morrisson said.
‘The Border-Gavaskar Trophy has been a great success and it was fantastic to see such a great turnout all summer long.’
51,371 spectators streamed through the turnstiles of the MCG on Monday – enough to break the record for the highest attendance for a Test at the famous ground
The fans were treated to a great spell from Australian skipper Pat Cummins (pictured), who took two early wickets
A total of 43,867 fans came through the gates on Sunday, taking the total attendance to 299,329 and breaking the previous record – 271,865 against England in 2013 – for a Boxing Day Test.
This Test has become the second most attended Test of all time, trailing only the India-Pakistan match (465,000) at Eden Gardens, Kolkata, in 1999.
With five-day Tests becoming a rarity in modern cricket, especially in Australia, all tickets for Monday’s action cost $10.
Saturday attracted 83,073 fans, a record for day three of a Boxing Day Test.
Thursday’s heat prevented Boxing Day from breaking the all-time Test cricket single-day record (91,092 in 2013 at the MCG), but 87,242 fans were still in attendance.
Cooler conditions on Friday brought in 85,147 fans – a record for day two of a Boxing Day Test.
The previous record for an Australia-India Boxing Day Test was 194,481 in 2014, MS Dhoni’s red-ball farewell.
Usman Khawaja (front) and Alex Carey (back) celebrate Virat Kohli’s dismissal
“I’ve never seen anything like this at a cricket match,” Melbourne Cricket Club boss Stuart Fox said on Sunday.
“I think just the atmosphere in the stadium… all our staff on the first day said how happy the crowd was.”
It continues to be a monster year for the MCG after three sell-out Taylor Swift concerts from her iconic The Eras Tour in February, and the AFL season averaging 60,000 per match.
“I thought Taylor Swift was big, but this was something else,” Fox said.
“But I think with Taylor Swift coming in, having a fantastic AFL season, this Boxing Day Test (2024) will be tough to beat, I can assure you.”