- A record attendance for a Test Match at Perth Stadium
- Average viewing audiences up 39% on last year’s Test against India
- An interim average audience of 2.3 million tuned into the final session to watch Travis Head’s thrilling century
The NRMA Insurance Ashes Series opener captivated fans across the country with a record crowd attending Perth Stadium and huge audiences watching around Australia.
The West Test saw Australia defeat England in two days with Mitch Starc claiming Player of the Match after taking 10 wickets across the match which included figures of 7-58 in the first innings.
Travis Head’s 123-run (off 83 balls) knock catapulted Australia to the target of 205 set by England in the final session of Day 2, delivering them an eight-wicket win.
The total attendance for the West Test was 101,514 (51,531 and 49,983 on Day 1 and 2 respectively) which is the highest total attendance ever at Perth Stadium, exceeding the 96,463 for last year’s Test v India.
The West Test dominated TV and streaming ratings across the two days of play on Kayo Sports, Foxtel, Seven and 7plus Sport. An interim average audience of 1.6 million tuned in across the Test, a 39% increase on last year’s Border Gavaskar Trophy opener in Perth.
The strong viewership ratings were headlined by an interim 2.3 million average audience for the final session on Day 2 to watch Travis Head blast the second fastest Ashes century, which out-rated all sessions of the 2021-22 Ashes Series.
Cricket Australia digital channels saw a surge in engagement, with 1.1 million people from within Australia visiting cricket.com.au and the Cricket Australia Live app across the two days of the Test – up 36% on the first two days of last season’s Perth Test.
Fans flocked to cricket.com.au and the Cricket Australia Live app for rich video content, with views from Australian users up 166% compared with the first two days of the opening Test of last summer.
The vast global reach of the series was also evident with 117 million video views across Cricket Australia’s social media channels during the Test match.
Todd Greenberg, Cricket Australia CEO said:
“The NRMA Insurance West Test was a remarkable event and it’s no surprise the match drew a record crowd for a Perth Test in just two days and captivated viewers across Australia.
“Head’s magnificent century and Mitch Starc’s brilliant bowling helped create an electric atmosphere and this will be long remembered as the Test when Perth Stadium took its place among the great cricket stadiums.
“The dramatic images on both days were conveyed expertly by our broadcast partners to huge audiences confirming our prediction this Ashes series would be the biggest sports event in Australia this year.
“While the match finished in just two days the action was enough to satisfy any cricket fan and will leave everyone wondering what comes next when the series resumes at the Gabba.”
The second Test of the series, the NRMA Insurance Day-Night Test, begins on December 4 in Brisbane.
