During the second day of the first Test against South Africa at Kingsmead, Durban, Australian wicket-keeper Tim Paine was heard saying, “Well done! Test crowds -- or the lack of them -- have been a concern in South Africa, and Durban in particular, ever since South Africa staged its first post-isolation Test in the coastal city in 1992/93. Despite frequently being allocated the prime Boxing Day holiday slot, single day crowds have seldom exceeded 10,000. The current match is being played at an unusual time of year for Test cricket but Altaaf Kazi, Cricket South Africa's head of communications, said the turn-out was disappointing. One theory is that people prefer to watch Test cricket on television, with live ball-by-ball coverage on both free-to-air and subscription channels.

Source: dna March 03, 2018 13:22 UTC