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ICC World Cup 2023: Crowd watch

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HitWicket

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1696502226775.pngOnly a few thousand in the stadium for the start of a world cup. Serves the BCCI right for their incompetence in organising this tournament but what an embarrassment.
 
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VERY disappointing for prosperous, world top 10 economy to have an empty stadium for their biggest ever sporting event.

Lets hope the match is at least a contest between bat and ball.
 
Just checked the book my show
And there i saw the tickets are almost sold out for this match.
That means stadium will be almost housefull during 2nd innings.
People are not taking risk in this excess heat.
 
why there is no crowd? where is the hype. this just looks plain and just another game.
 
HitWicket said:
Only a few thousand in the stadium for the start of a world cup. Serves the BCCI right for their incompetence in organising this tournament but what an embarrassment.
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Ahmedabad is a working city. Nobody is going to take off and come and watch ENG v NZ on a hot afternoon like this.
 
160KPH said:
Pretty sad to see tbh..

Wanted a grand opening ceremony and a packed match to kick things off.
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Even with 30,000 people in the crowd, this stadium will seem empty.

Opener should’ve been in Mumbai.
 
Pathetic really
When highlights of THE OPENING MATCH OF THE WORLD CUP would reach non-cricketing countries, it would be embarrassing.

Moments like these I genuinely question will cricket remain a third class game played by South Asia and some people in Australia and England.
 
I just noticed as well, the stadium looks empty.
What a damp start to the World Cup !

If you wanted to play in such a big concrete jungle then India should have played the first game. That’s how you build up the hype.

This is a big own goal but that’s what happens when you just focus on commercialising cricket without planning strategically.
 
Nikhil_cric said:
Ahmedabad is a working city. Nobody is going to take off and come and watch ENG v NZ on a hot afternoon like this.
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Woww. Take the GDP per capita of football audience and the GDP per capita of cricket audience and you would find football is atleast 10 times ahead.
Do football fans not work? How do they still end up earning so much more?

Precisely the problem with ODI Cricket where people start watching after 60% of the match is completed.
 
saqib.rai said:
Woww. Take the GDP per capita of football audience and the GDP per capita of cricket audience and you would find football is atleast 10 times ahead.
Do football fans not work? How do they still end up earning so much more?

Precisely the problem with ODI Cricket where people start watching after 60% of the match is completed.
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You mean football fans watch a 7 hour sport where they'll come and support neutral teams, taking off and braving heat?

Buddy, only 12000 or so were even present to watch Australia take on Afghanistan in the World T20 at Adelaide last year and it was a home game and it was essentially a knockout for Australia. Does that mean T20 is dead in Australia?
 
Nikhil_cric said:
You mean football fans watch a 7 hour sport where they'll come and support neutral teams, taking off and braving heat?

Buddy, only 12000 or so were even present to watch Australia take on Afghanistan in the World T20 at Adelaide last year and it was a home game and it was essentially a knockout for Australia. Does that mean T20 is dead in Australia?
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India should have played the first game.

but there are so many jobless people in India. The YouTube comments of Pakistani "sports journalists " are filled with Indians. These "sports journalists " are people who their own families wouldn't watch

Where are these people when you need them the most?
 
Nikhil_cric said:
How many neutral fans watched NZ vs SA when the World Cup was held in England? This si the equivalent of that. Around 4 million are already watching on Hotstar in India - a paid subscription.
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Don’t people in India just have cable?
 
lol joke of a host. Not playing the opener.. Not getting a crowd in the first game.

BCCI cant host a tournament.
 
Nikhil_cric said:
How many neutral fans watched NZ vs SA when the World Cup was held in England? This si the equivalent of that.
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NZ v SA in 2019 was a sell out with a packed out stadium (so at least 3x as many people as are currently in the stadium for this game) despite also being a rain affected game and starting earlier than any ODI usually did in England to suit the Indian broadcaster. It also wasn't the opening game of the world cup and didn't feature the world champions.
 
saqib.rai said:
India should have played the first game.

but there are so many jobless people in India. The YouTube comments of Pakistani "sports journalists " are filled with Indians. These "sports journalists " are people who their own families wouldn't watch

Where are these people when you need them the most?
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Let's not go there. Plenty of jobless people in Karachi and Karachi attendances are poor even for PSL.
 
HitWicket said:
NZ v SA in 2019 was a sell out with a packed out stadium (so at least 3x as many people as are currently in the stadium for this game) despite also being a rain affected game. It also wasn't the opening game of the world cup and didn't feature the world champions.
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And this will have people poring in for the 2nd half. Nobody cares enough about these two teams to come here in the afternoon sun.
 
ExpressPacer said:
Don’t people in India just have cable?
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Yes in rural areas most of people's are watching on TV but these days Hotstar is most suitable option as Internet Speed is good all over India .btw 5G internet is free so People's watching more on Mobile .
 
Nikhil_cric said:
I can get ICC events + EPL + many cricket series + entire Disney/Marvel content for 400 rupees a year on my cellphone. It works out cheaper than cable for me.
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400/year is ridiculously cheap. Mobile data is cheap in Pakistan too but streaming services are not ridiculously cheap like this.
 
Nikhil_cric said:
And this will have people poring in for the 2nd half. Nobody cares enough about these two teams to come here in the afternoon sun.
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If the stadiums going to be empty for the first half then the opening game of the world cup shouldn't have been played on this day/at this time/at this venue (pick whichever you want).
 
Just tuned in, my oh my… can’t even fill up 10% of the stadium on the opening day. According to Indian media outlets, they’re even giving women and kids free entry into the stadium.

What a joke, remember when all the Indian journalists and ex cricketers had a go at Pakistan for the lack of crowd in the Asia Cup, bet they’re quiet now.
 
Nikhil_cric said:
I can get ICC events + EPL + many cricket series + entire Disney/Marvel content for 400 rupees a year on my cellphone. It works out cheaper than cable for me.
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This is insane. There has to be a catch to it. It's too good to be true
 
topspin said:
True but still this is so poor. I doubt it would be this empty if it was hosted in Pakistan.

The WC without a crowd just feel soulless.
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If it was hosted in Pakistan it would have a crowd because since the 2009 ban, we still don't play as much at home as international sides. It has increased at home but not to the level of other sides so it's a treat to watch.

India get games on stadiums left and right, that's why.
 
HitWicket said:
If the stadiums going to be empty for the first half then the opening game of the world cup shouldn't have been played on this day/at this time/at this venue (pick whichever you want).
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On what basis are you saying this? Yeah it's been poorly organised no doubt and you'll probably get better crowds at a couple of other venues but even back in 2011 neutral games didn't always have massive crowds.

People will still tune in to watch though.
 
Nikhil_cric said:
On what basis are you saying this? Yeah it's been poorly organised no doubt and you'll probably get better crowds at a couple of other venues but even back in 2011 neutral games didn't always have massive crowds.

People will still tune in to watch though.
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Because having a mostly empty stadium for the opening game of the tournament is an embarrassment and just one among a long list of pieces of incompetent management there's been around this tournament. Heck, the fixtures weren't even finalised until 3 weeks ago! The fixtures should've been determined a year ago with the tickets on sale shortly after.
 
Should have been held at Mumbai or Kolkata, this Ahmedabad is just a dump and getting all the privilege only because it's Modi's home.
 
HitWicket said:
Because having a mostly empty stadium for the opening game of the tournament is an embarrassment and just one among a long list of pieces of incompetent management there's been around this tournament. Heck, the fixtures weren't even finalised until 3 weeks ago! The fixtures should've been determined a year ago with the tickets on sale shortly after.
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Even this was perfectly organised, you won't get full houses to watch these teams play in the first half.
 
Nikhil_cric said:
Even this was perfectly organised, you won't get full houses to watch these teams play in the first half.
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So once again, questions should be asked over why this venue and/or these teams were selected. A 95% empty stadium for the opening ball of the world cup is an embarrassment.
 
HitWicket said:
So once again, questions should be asked over why this venue and/or these teams were selected. A 95% empty stadium for the opening ball of the world cup is an embarrassment.
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This venue is chosen to gain political mileage, it's named after the Current PM in his home state . Out of nowhere this venue gets all the important matches, such as opening, finals, India Pakistan and a few others. This WC is all about Modi this Modi that..
 
What an embarrassment.

Would have gotten more people to turn up for Bangladesh vs Nepal in Napier.
 
Indian public just wants to see their team play

Why would they take a day off during the working week and come and watch these teams?
 
HitWicket said:
So once again, questions should be asked over why this venue and/or these teams were selected. A 95% empty stadium for the opening ball of the world cup is an embarrassment.
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Showcase Modi stadium.
 
If there’s empty seats why not bring elephants and other animals to fill these up? This is what I don’t understand. Can someone please explain how you can have your opening game with empty crowds?

It’s like going to a family dinner and be served with empty plates.
 
HitWicket said:
So once again, questions should be asked over why this venue and/or these teams were selected. A 95% empty stadium for the opening ball of the world cup is an embarrassment.
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Only you seem embarrassed by it. This is gonna be a much better World Cup than England can ever hope to have. And that's despite the pathetic organising .

You can take any venue in India and it won't have much of a crowd on a hot afternoon on a weekday.

Neither England nor NZ are enough of a draw to get that.
 
Nikhil_cric said:
Only you seem embarrassed by it. This is gonna be a much better World Cup than England can ever hope to have. And that's despite the pathetic organising .

You can take any venue in India and it won't have much of a crowd on a hot afternoon on a weekday.

Neither England nor NZ are enough of a draw to get that.
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You seem to have taken this as some sort of insult to your nationalist pride rather than looking objectively at the awful organisation of this world cup and what I'm saying, at which point it's not really worth discussing any more.
 
MenInG said:
Indian public just wants to see their team play

Why would they take a day off during the working week and come and watch these teams?
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i remember the 1996 world cup opener which was played between England and NZ as well in India and it was a full stadium.
 
HitWicket said:
You seem to have taken this as some sort of insult to your nationalist pride rather than looking objectively at the awful organisation of this world cup and what I'm saying, at which point it's not really worth discussing any more.
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Even if you accept the fact that it is terribly organised and I accept that it is one, you are making it out like it's an embarrassing state of affairs that there's no full house for this game in the very first half.


How many opening matches of World Cup matches do you even remember? Certainly not the farce that was 99 ? Or 07 or 2015?

It's horribly organised and I squarely blame BCCI /Jay Shah/current ruling dispensation for this .

But even then, you're simply not gonna find packed houses for random games on a weekday. 2nd half will be much better especially in other venues.
 
Stewie said:
i remember the 1996 world cup opener which was played between England and NZ as well in India and it was a full stadium.
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1996 is pretty much ancient history. Random tri series crowds had huge crowds . Now even India matches are not packed during the day.

Recently we saw that in Mohali
 
Disappointing to see World Cup opening in front of just a few spectators in Ahmedabad. Very disappointing.

1696506317117.png
 
Such a downer. Potential to be one of the best games of the tournament and not even 25% full. BCCI can make all the money they want but their adminstration quality is so inferior to England or Australian boards.
 
Nikhil_cric said:
Even if you accept the fact that it is terribly organised and I accept that it is one, you are making it out like it's an embarrassing state of affairs that there's no full house for this game in the very first half.


How many opening matches of World Cup matches do you even remember? Certainly not the farce that was 99 ? Or 07 or 2015?

It's horribly organised and I squarely blame BCCI /Jay Shah/current ruling dispensation for this .

But even then, you're simply not gonna find packed houses for random games on a weekday. 2nd half will be much better especially in other venues.
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There's clearly something on the scale between a full house and only having a few thousand people in to watch the opening ball of the world cup.

What did you think was farcical about the organisation/crowds at the 1999/2007/2015 world cups?
 
Most cricket fans can become slightly defensive when criticisms are raised because you feel a small sense of ownership when it's your home country is hosting a World Cup.

The trend since 1999 is to start a World Cup with your host nation. However I understand the logic of opening with ENG-NZL after THAT final in 2019.

I think the real problem is the venue. Two neutral teams at a ground holding > 100k on a hot weekday in a country where millions simply cannot afford a day off is asking for a PR disaster.

Even with 30k attendance - you'll still have a mass of empty seats. So why not play at 33k capacity Mumbai instead ?

Without delving into politics, this is when vanity and an unthinking desire for self-promotion backfires. Were two marquee matches in the Final and IND v PAK not enough to feed one's ego ?
 
HitWicket said:
There's clearly something on the scale between a full house and only having a few thousand people in to watch the opening ball of the world cup.

What did you think was farcical about the organisation/crowds at the 1999/2007/2015 world cups?
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Nothing . Point was nobody remembers those matches and as long as we get crowds for the bigger matches , the lack of crowds alone is not enough to be embarrassed about .
 
Virender Sehwag had an interesting advice for Cricket World Cup 2023 organisers after the competition opened to empty stands in Ahmedabad on Thursday.

Former Indian cricket team opener Virender Sehwag believes that the Cricket World Cup 2023 organizers should give free tickets to school and college students for matches not featuring India after the competition opened to empty stands in Ahmedabad on Thursday. The Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad failed to draw crowds and the lack of support left a lot of cricket fans on social media stunned. Sehwag believes that the popularity for ODI cricket is dwindling at the moment and better access for youngsters during the tournament can boost their interest in the sport.

Hopefully after office hours, there should be more people coming in. But for games not featuring Bharat, there should be free tickets for school and college children. With the fading interest in 50 over game, it will definitely help that youngsters get to experience a World Cup game and players get to play in front of a full stadium. Sehwag posted on social media platform X (formerly called Twitter).

Source: NDTV Sports
 
I think it is a good crowd. The stadium capacity is 250,000 or something so even a crowd of 50k will look small.

Think India as host should have been playing the opening game of the tournament, probably against England as the holder. If not they should have held the match somewhere like Delhi where a 50k crowd would have looked big.
 
Firstly it s working day. Secondly India has been doing very well at the asian games and won 3 golds and some more silver and bronze medals too today. So obviously people are more interested in that compared to a match where India isn't playing. After 7th October when Asian games ends Cricket will have the full attention of the public. People need to undertand that India is no longer a one sport nation. Even in Asian games India has won in many sporting disciplines like Equestrian, Athletics, Squash, Tennis, Wrestling, Archery, Shooting and many more. So hope my Pakistani friends be more patient. In a stadium of 1.3 lakh capacity even 50,000 will seem like empty.
 
Stewie said:
i remember the 1996 world cup opener which was played between England and NZ as well in India and it was a full stadium.
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Because in 1996 Indians only followed cricket. People had no interst in following Athletics, Squash etc, Since thsi morning India has won many medals inc,luding Gold, Silver and Bronze at the Asian Games. So obviously people will give that more preference than a match where India isn;t featuring. Today Neeraj Chopra ia also a huge star in India like any other cricketer. India has taken rapid strides in the field of sports since 1996. Once the Asian games are over you will see better crowds if not full stadiums for non-india matches.
 
Aman said:
What an embarrassment.

Would have gotten more people to turn up for Bangladesh vs Nepal in Napier.
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Thats because Bangladeshi and Nepali fans would throng the stadium who will cheer their team. Matches featuring Asian teams usually dont have any trouble in filling stadiums. But will a west indies vs south africa match attract the same crowd in Napier?
 
seems to be a disastrous world cup already...franchise cricket killed the sport
 
Indians just love watching Indian cricket team only and it's nothing to do with the love for the game. How can BCCI be so silly to host opening game at their biggest venue, that too without the host country. Opening games always set the tone to a major sporting tournament, host country should always play the opening game and "ON A WEEKEND!". Way to kill ODIs impression further.

Flat roads of Indian pitches could also make it a boring world cup. Sub continent shouldn't hold any major tournaments as pitches are mostly hurrendous, just batting friendly paradise without much for the bowler.
 
Kriketer said:
Flat roads of Indian pitches could also make it a boring world cup. Sub continent shouldn't hold any major tournaments as pitches are mostly hurrendous, just batting friendly paradise without much for the bowler.
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Pitches between India and Pakistan are two very different things.

And no, Ramiz Raja has no right to speak on pitches.
 
saqib.rai said:
This is insane. There has to be a catch to it. It's too good to be true
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No catch. It allows one device at a time. Pay few more rupees and get 2-4 device streaming at a time. Even the top subscription (premium) costs some INR 1400/year with 4k and Dolby Atmos.
 
ArabKnight said:
Pitches between India and Pakistan are two very different things.

And no, Ramiz Raja has no right to speak on pitches.
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Yes Pakistan has only flat roads, and India has flat roads and dust bowls so equally horrendous pitches
 
Kriketer said:
Yes Pakistan has only flat roads, and India has flat roads and dust bowls so equally horrendous pitches
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You know, my guy.

The jokester Ramiz Raja ruined Pakistan pitches by making cemented pitches during his tenure.

Pakistan has flat grounds, only Multan and Karachi.
 
Babeikh said:
I think it is a good crowd. The stadium capacity is 250,000 or something so even a crowd of 50k will look small.

Think India as host should have been playing the opening game of the tournament, probably against England as the holder. If not they should have held the match somewhere like Delhi where a 50k crowd would have looked big.
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Lol, it is not 250,000 :D
 
There were 40-50K people's during NZ innings .more than any other ground in other countries except Australia .
 
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