Ricky Ponting discusses BGT's popularity in comparision to Ashes
What's the story
The 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) has set a new benchmark in the history of Australian cricket, drawing the highest crowd for a non-Ashes series.
The five-match series drew an unprecedented 837,879 spectators across all venues.
This feat makes the BGT the fourth-most attended series in Australia's cricketing annals, after the Ashes series of 1936-37, 2017-18 and 1946-47.
Expert opinion
Ponting weighs in on BGT's growing popularity
Former Australian skipper Ricky Ponting also acknowledged the rising popularity of the BGT.
"I had a look at the numbers yesterday, it was something like 837,000 people came to watch the Test matches, which is unheard of here in Australia," Ponting told The ICC Review.
However, he suggested a clearer picture of fan preferences between the Ashes and BGT will emerge when England tours Australia later this year.
Attendance potential
Ponting highlights potential for even higher attendance
Ponting also emphasized that the attendance numbers could've been even more if all Tests lasted five days.
He said, "Perth only went four days, Adelaide only went three days, Sydney only went three days."
The former captain opined that these numbers would've been astronomical if those Tests all went five days."
This shows how much fans are interested in the BGT series.
Attendance records
Record-breaking attendance at individual Test matches
Notably, the Perth Test also set a new record for daily attendance with 32,368 spectators on Day 2.
Adelaide Day/Night Test had recorded a single-day record of 51,642 on its second day.
In Brisbane, the second day's crowd of 34,227 was the largest for a Test against India.
The Melbourne Test broke all previous records with 3,73,691 total attendance.
WTC final
Australia secure spot in ICC World Test Championship final
Australia beat India in Sydney to reclaim the Border-Gavaskar Trophy after a decade.
Despite losing the series opener in Perth, hosts Australia bounced back with wins in Adelaide, Melbourne, and Sydney to clinch a 3-1 series win.
With this, Australia also booked a spot in the 2025 ICC World Test Championship final, knocking India out.
The former will face South Africa in the summit clash.