Melbourne, 30 December (UITV)- The Boxing Day Test match being played between India and Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) is currently a topic of discussion around the world. It has set a new record in terms of audience attendance in the stadium. This fourth match of the Boxing Day Test has broken the record of the six-day Test match played between Australia and England in 1936/37, when a total of 3,50,534 spectators came to watch the match.
So far, during the five days of play in this Boxing Day Test, a total of 3,51,104 spectators have been present in the ground at the historic Melbourne Cricket Ground, which is the largest number ever for any Test match in Australia. Cricket Australia shared this historic achievement on the social media platform ‘X’ and wrote, “Thank you, Melbourne. A new Australian cricket record, an MCG record and history has been created.” This is a great achievement, as seeing such a huge crowd at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, which is a historic venue, is an important moment in the history of cricket.
On the first day of this match, 87,242 spectators were present in the stadium, which was the highest number of spectators on any day of a Boxing Day Test. On the third day, 83,073 spectators came to the ground, which was a new record for that day. Due to this huge crowd, the staff had to work very hard to manage the events and arrangements. Especially the number of fans from India gave the stadium a festival-like atmosphere. The enthusiasm of the Indian supporters was worth seeing and this match became famous all over the world as an international cricket event.
Earlier, the record of the highest audience for a Boxing Day Test was in the 2013/14 Ashes series, when a total of 2,71,865 spectators came to the stadium. This Test match crossed this number of spectators and set a new milestone. Thus, this match has created history in the world of cricket not only in terms of the game but also in terms of the number of spectators.
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Now if we talk about the match, India has been given a target of 340 runs in the fourth innings in this match. In response, the Indian team has scored 95 runs for the loss of 3 wickets till the second session of the 5th day. The Indian batsmen have worked hard to achieve this target and their aim is to draw this match. However, India’s key batsmen failed to play their role in this match. Captain Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul and Virat Kohli got out cheaply. Rohit Sharma fell prey to Pat Cummins after scoring just 9 runs, while KL Rahul was dismissed without opening the account and was sent to the pavilion by the Australian captain. At the same time, Virat Kohli was also dismissed by Mitchell Starc after scoring only 5 runs.
However, India’s opening batsman Yashasvi Jaiswal has kept the team’s hopes alive by scoring a half-century. Also, wicketkeeper batsman Rishabh Pant is also supporting him. Both left-handed batsmen are playing a little different from their natural aggressive game and are focusing more on defensive play. The partnership of Yashasvi and Rishabh has now become important for the Indian team and if these two batsmen are successful in prolonging this partnership, then India can have a chance of a draw.
This match has created history in terms of spectators so far, but in terms of the game, the Indian team is facing a challenge in this match. In the future, this match will be remembered not only in terms of the game but also in terms of records.
