It’s already the biggest ever crowd for a Boxing Day Test – and the looming classic between Australia and India is set to break the all-time MCG record as Day 5 dawns.
350,534 spectators filled the stadium in the 1936/37 Ashes series, when Don Bradman and the Aussies overturned a 2-0 deficit to defeat England 3-2 in one of the greatest series ever.
But with the 2024 Test, some 88 years on, needing a crowd of 51,206 on Day 5 to break the benchmark of 350,534, monster queues outside the MCG before the day’s play leave a new record as almost a formality.
Up to 75,000 spectators are forecast, with India needing 340 runs and Australia ten wickets for victory as the match goes right down to the wire – far and away the best ever for a fifth day at the MCG.
Amid a blockbuster series and with a gargantuan contingent of Indian supporters filling the stands, Days 1-4 of the Boxing Day Test have shattered records galore, with the second, third and fourth days all the largest-ever crowds of their kind, with 85,147, 83,073 and 43,867 in attendance respectively.
The bumper crowd has left stadium officials scrambling, with catering and security particular concerns.
The MCG had initially planned to close several stands, standard practice late in matches as crowds typically twindle; but according to Nine’s Tom Morris, all will be open and policed for Day 5.
With 28-degree temperatures forecast, shipping in extra ice creams is also a top priority.
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