The ongoing Boxing Day Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) set a new attendance record with over 350,000 fans flocking to Melbourne to witness the thrilling 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy clash between India and Australia.
The Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) broke the all-time attendance record for a pre-lunch Test on Day 5 in Australia, surpassing the 351,104 attendance that had stood for 87 years.
The Boxing Day Test makes history at the MCG
Notably, the total attendance of 350,700 is the highest ever for a Test match in Australia. Cricket Australia (CA) has confirmed that over 351,000 fans attended day five of the ongoing fourth Test match of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 in Melbourne, breaking the long-standing record for the largest single crowd ever. Test match in Australia.
The excitement surrounding the traditional Boxing Day Test, held a week after Christmas, has brought huge crowds to the famous Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), with more than 80,000 spectators filling the stands on each of the first three days between India and Australia. .
Thank you, Melbourne.
Australian cricket record, MCG record and made history ❤️ #AUSWIND pic.twitter.com/VVvfwKWd6J
– Cricket Australia (@CricketAus) December 30, 2024
The intense action and drama on Day 5 of the ongoing Boxing Day Test is expected to push the numbers even higher, surpassing the previous attendance record held by the MCG itself.
Melbourne Cricket Ground is expecting over 70,000 fans for the 5th day action between India and Australia.
The record for the largest number of fans attending a Test match at the MCG stood for 87 years and was set during the Ashes series in January 1937, when 350,534 fans attended over six days. The main draw then was Sir Donald Bradman, who had become Australia’s first national cricket icon, drawing huge crowds at the venue.
The MCG was full for the first three days of the Boxing Day Test, with many fans from India filling the stands. It felt like a home crowd when Nitish Kumar Reddy scored his maiden Test century at the MCG. But on Day 4, attendance dropped to just over 40,000.
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But Cricket Australia (CA) was surprised by a strong surge in numbers on the morning of Day 5, as more than 50,000 fans made their way to the MCG in the first session alone. However, the MCG expects more than 70,000 fans to attend Day 5 of the ongoing fourth BGT 2024-25 Test, which will take its total attendance past the 350,000 mark for the week.
Australia vs India 4th Test becomes the second most attended match of all time
The first day of the Boxing Day Test was particularly popular, with 87,000 in attendance for an exciting contest at the MCG. To make the Australia vs India contest more accessible to the Melbourne crowd, Cricket Australia (CA) has announced that tickets for Day 5 will be priced at just AUD 10 (approx. INR 530), with free entry for children under 15 years of age.
Note that the one-day attendance is lower than some other matches, but the total attendance for the MCG Test made it the second highest attendance of all time in cricket history. The highest attendance record still belongs to the historic India vs Pakistan match in 1999 at the Eden Gardens which witnessed an incredible 465,000 fans over five days.
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