With the series victory in sight, Team India will cross swords in the fourth Test match against Australia at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, starting March 09. For India, the game holds extreme value for two big reasons - first, a victory in the Border-Gavaskar series, and secondly, a win will all but guarantee their place in the World Test Championship (WTC) final. The hosts would be under pressure after losing the third Test in Indore.
World record in sight
The Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad is considered to be the largest cricket stadium in the world. Its audience capacity is around 1,30,000. As a result, a world record can be created on the first day of the Test match.
So far in Test cricket history, the maximum number of fans attending in the stadium is 91,092. The record was set at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, which is Australia's largest stadium, during an Ashes Test match between Australia and England on December 26, 2013. Ahmedabad Test is likely to break the record as thousands of fans are expected to be present on Day 1 because it will have two prominent figures in attendance. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will watch the Test match with his Australian counterpart Anthony Albanese, who is scheduled to arrive in India on March 08.
The Narendra Modi Stadium already secured the Guinness world record for the highest T20 attendance when 1,01,566 people witnessed the 2022 IPL final between Gujarat Titans and Rajasthan Royals.
All to play for in Ahmedabad
Steve Smith-led Australia made a comeback in the 2023 Border-Gavaskar Trophy with a resounding nine-wicket victory in spin-friendly conditions at Holkar Cricket Stadium, Indore. The 76-run target did not trouble confident Australian batters as India lost the Test in the first session and chased the target down easily. India still leads the series 2-1 after having secured wins in the first two matches of the series.
The first two Test matches between India and Australia in the ongoing Border-Gavaskar series came to an end within three days. The Nagpur Test yielded result in eight sessions and the Delhi Test also produced result in the same time. The Indore Test came to an end in just seven sessions.
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