The much-awaited Border-Gavaskar Trophy series opener drew record numbers of fans to Perth Stadium, with days one and two setting records for the highest single-day attendance for Test cricket in Perth. Ta. The number of participants in the Perth test increased by an impressive 63% year-on-year. Furthermore, data provided by Cricket Australia shows average viewership has increased by 30% year-on-year, reflecting significant interest in the match. Cricket Australia also reported record engagement across its digital channels, highlighting widespread excitement and engagement with the event both at the stadium and across Australia.
Days one and two at Perth Stadium saw 31,302 and 32,368 people pass through the gates respectively, setting a record for attendance for a Test match in Perth. The total attendance was 96,463, the second largest in Perth history and the highest total for a Perth Stadium.
Perth Scorchers also set an attendance record for the Weber WBBL match held at the WACA Ground on the evening of the second day of the West Test, with more than 100,000 people attending the cricket over the four-day period.
Cricket Australia said ticket sales for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series were more than 2.5 times higher than the 2018-19 tour of India, with opening day general tickets currently drying up at The Gabba in Brisbane.
Large crowds are also expected in Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney, and fans are encouraged to buy tickets as soon as possible.
The Perth Test dominated TV ratings for each of the first three days, with seven sessions averaging over 1 million viewers across all platforms (Seven, 7plus Sport, Foxtel, Foxtel Go, Foxtel Now, Kayo Sports). It gained viewers, including 1.6 million viewers nationwide. Third session on day 1.
Last season’s Perth Test against Pakistan saw average daily viewership increase by 30% in the first three days. This was the first time fans could stream Test cricket on Kayo Sports, Foxtel Go, Foxtel Now as well as 7plus Sport.
Cricket Australia’s digital channels saw a surge in engagement, with 2.7 million people visiting cricket.com.au and the Cricket Australia Live app from within Australia and 8.4 million users worldwide during the Test period.
Records were also broken for videos watched on cricket.com.au and the Cricket Australia Live app, with views by Australian users up 30% compared to the first test last summer.
The global reach of the series was also evidenced by the 259 million video views across Cricket Australia’s social media channels during the Test matches.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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