The Kwa-Zulu Natal Cricket Union (KZNCU) will launch a "thorough internal review" into poor attendance at the Kingsmead Test between South Africa and Australia, which ended on Tuesday. A total of just under 20,000 fans attended the game, which was South Africa's first home Test since January 2025 and first at home since becoming World Test champions. The ground has capacity for 20,000 people a day, which means less than a fifth of those who could have got a seat, chose to arrive at the game.
Several factors may have affected fans' decision on whether to attend the match or not. The Durban CBD, which is a kilometre away from the Kingsmead Stadium, was locked down for much of the match due to anti-immigration protests. Initially, there was heavy police presence in the city and by the end of the game, the South African National Defence Force had been deployed. At the match itself, there was almost no sign of the unrest.
Other reasons for the poor turnout include the cost of living in South Africa, where petrol hit a record high of R29.38 (US$1.78) a litre on October 7, two days before the Test was due to start. Test captain Temba Bavuma, in an isiXhosa answer to a question in the post-match press conference, also recognised the high cost of living may have kept people away. KZNCU acknowledged that but also wants to find out more about what they can do to bring people through the gates.
Related
"A Test match of this quality, featuring the Proteas and Australia, deserved greater support in the stands," Heinrich Strydom, KZNCU CEO, said in a statement. "While we recognise that supporters face competing demands on their time and finances, we must also understand better what influences their decisions to attend and what more we can do to make live cricket an attractive and worthwhile experience.
"This is something we will reflect on as a Union, through a thorough internal review, and as a cricket community. We need to listen to our supporters, reconnect with our communities, and continue to find ways to make Test cricket more accessible, engaging and appealing to families and cricket lovers of all ages."
Strydom noted that the quality of cricket and standard of the pitch were exceptional. South Africa's head coach Shukri Conrad also commended groundsman Wonderboy Khanyile on the surface.
Durban has been known for low crowds at Tests in recent years, and the Boxing Day Test has been moved from there to SuperSport Park in Centurion as a result. This season, the crowd was also lower than expected for the season-opening ODI against Australia, which was played on a public holiday on September 24, and saw just over 12,000 people in attendance. Although the match was not on a working day, South African school and varsity-goers are until their final examination period, which may also affect turnout.
That means the situation may not be much better in Gqeberha for the second Test, which starts on Sunday. There is only one weekend day of play and it is forecast to rain on that day, and the following one. The Newlands Test in Cape Town starts on a Tuesday, and is due to end on a Saturday, which could have an impact on crowd support.
This is the first time in a summer that South Africa is hosting Tests as early as October, as increasing demands on the cricket calendar squeeze premier fixtures into the shoulder windows. South Africa's prime Test period is between November and March but with the SA20 occupying most of January and February and the IPL beginning in March, Tests have been cut to the later months of the year only.