Cricket World Cup Opener Draws 'Embarrassing' Crowd to 120,000-Seat Stadium

Cricket fans were appalled by all the empty seats at India's Narendra Stadium for the first game of the ICC Cricket World Cup. 

Billed as the most anticipated game of the year in a country known for its love of cricket, only a few thousand seats were filled in facility built to hold 120,000 fans and England squared off against New Zealand.

England women’s cricketer Danni Wyatt asked “Where’s the crowd?” in a post on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.

Jemimah Rodrigues, her Indian counterpart, responded by saying the crowd is waiting for India’s match against Pakistan on Saturday, October 14. 

Perhaps the biggest gripe from fans about the match was that there was no Indian team to root for. Former India captain Ravi Shastri pointed out during the match commentary that India’s absence in the opening match could be a big factor behind the apparent indifference from local fans.

According to Al Jazeera, this was the first time in 27 years that the opening match of the tournament did not involve a host team, and the last time it did happen it was during a World Cup hosted by India.