Border-Gavaskar Trophy is off to a box office start and the series opener in Perth between India and Australia has smashed all records, as per an official release issued by Cricket Australia. The first Test at Optus Stadium, saw India staging a remarkable comeback after being bundled out for 150 in the first innings. The visitors took inspiration from stand-in captain Jasprit Bumrah’s eight-wicket haul in the contest to register a memorable win by 295 runs to take a 1-0 lead in the five-match series.
The intense battle between India and Australia was played out in front of a huge crowd in Perth and as expected, the viewership numbers is breaking all sorts of records.
Fans turned out in record numbers at Perth Stadium for the first Test while huge audiences around Australia watched the highly anticipated Border-Gavaskar Trophy series opener on broadcast and digital channels.
As per Cricket Australia, the opening two days at the Perth Stadium set records for attendance at any Test Match in Perth, with 31,302 (Day 1) and 32,368 (Day 2) going through the gates respectively.
“The total attendance for the Test match was 96,463, the second-highest total attendance ever recorded in Perth and the highest at Perth Stadium,” Cricket Australia stated in its official release.
Phenomenal ticket sales for Border-Gavaskar Trophy
The ticket sales for the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy series are more than 2.5 times higher than for the 2018-19 India tour.
Cricket Australia also announced that the public tickets are currently exhausted for day one at The Gabba in Brisbane. For the uninitiated, India and Australia will play the third Test of the series in Brisbane, beginning December 14.
Big crowds are also forecast in Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney. As per Cricket Australia, the Perth Test also dominated TV ratings Down Under on each of the first three days, with seven sessions averaging more than 1 million viewers across all platforms including 1.6 million nationally for the third session of Day 1.
“Daily average viewing audiences increased 30 per cent on last season’s West Test against Pakistan across the first three days,” Cricket Australia stated.
Cricket Australia’s digital channels also saw a surge in engagement, with 2.7 million people from within Australia visiting cricket.com.au and the Cricket Australia Live app across the Test – and 8.4 million users globally.
India and Australia will now square off in the pink-ball Test in Adelaide, beginning December 6.
