What a sight it was indeed! A record crowd of 93,013 trooping into the Melbourne Cricket Ground to watch the 2015 World Cup final between Australia and New Zealand which to the delight of the majority of home team fans the hosts have won convincingly in what was a lop-sided bereft of all the expected excitement.
It is an amazing feeling even for an average fan to just get down into the Richmond Station or to the nearest bus bay close to the majestic venue and just walk into it — almost like a walk in the park. All that the cricket fan — of all categories — has to do is just be the owner of the ‘priceless’ ticket and walk through the many passages into the stadium with lush green parks surrounding the venue. Not a single cop who will stop the fans at any point unlike in India where there is an over-bearing influence of the cops in the name of security measures. There are only a couple of cops in each of the enclosures.
At Melbourne, armed with the ticket, one can have a ‘free trip’ to get a glance of the history of Australian cricket too what with the statues of the legendary figures like Sir Donald Bradman, Keith Miller, Dennis Lillee staring at you with glorious history dotted all over.
If one expected entry into the main stadium might be a major hassle, it was a pleasant surprise. The presence of only four security personnel politely manning the entry gates ensuring a smooth passage of fans was refreshing. The beauty of the whole system is the way fans are allowed with all their baggage. They can carry all sorts of snacks prepared at home — you don’t come across boards displaying “No outside food allowed”. In tune with the typical tourism promotion perspective, the fans can carry their smart phones and even digital cameras to freeze their moments of joy inside the stadium. There are absolutely no restrictions. In fact, even when the stadium was not even half-full, 45 minutes prior to the start of the match, one wondered if the stadium would fill up or not. But, as Sharon Carr who works with Accenture reminds that this is the beauty of Melbourne as one can walk into the stadium anytime within 15 minutes with a valid ticket. “We never felt uncomfortable. Unlike in India where all sorts of restrictions are imposed which force the fans to reach the periphery of the venue a full two hours to get into the ground, here at Melbourne, it is simply superb and fan-friendly,” she says having watched the India-South Africa match league match earlier at the MCG.
A New Zealander David Almstrong, who along with his five friends, have made it a point to be at the venue to cheer the Kiwis, sums it up more aptly when he says for them cricket match is like an outing in the bar even while gulping a few glasses of beer which anyone in the MCG can enjoy.
And, there are wheel chairs at every enclosure to take care of the physically challenged too.
In Indian context, extending such facilities depends on the history of ‘fans behaviour’. There is a fear amongst the cricket administrators back in India that the response from the fans might not be so sober as it is abroad. “The tendency to misuse the goodwill that can be extended by way of these facilities is a major threat,” says HCA Secretary K. John Manoj who was there for the final.
But, after all, a beginning has to be made to let the cricketing venues to be fan-friendly and not just ensure the comfort zones for only the VIPs.
