Cricket Australia's chief executive James Sutherland said 50-over cricket would continue to have a future on the international schedule beyond next year's World Cup, despite the poor crowds that had turned out for this month's series against South Africa.
The series was wrapped up by Australia at a sparse MCG on Friday night and it concludes in Sydney on Sunday, but Cricket Australia had wasted no time launching an investigation into why the numbers for a contest between two of the world's best one-day teams were exceptionally low.
The first three matches only averaged 10,000 spectators, despite a series of innovations by Cricket Australia, including four adult tickets for the price of three, while Melbourne, the self-proclaimed sports-mad capital of Australia, managed to lure a measly 14,177 for a game that ended in a nail-biting victory to the home side.
One theory floated for the poor attendances was the unusually early start to the international season, but Sutherland was adamant the World Cup, hosted Australia and New Zealand in February and March, would help revive interest in the format.
He added the International Cricket Council's new format to punish poor performances with relegation from the top pool would raise the stakes in how one-day cricket was played around the world.
"If you asked that question [about the future of 50-over cricket] in four months' time, I'd have little doubt that we'll all – the Australian public included – buy into the popularity of one-day cricket around the World Cup," Sutherland told Fairfax Media.
"I think what we need to do is grow the context around one-day cricket played in between World Cups.
"Certainly, the ICC, under it's new governance model, is moving down that path because it means you very much need to earn your stripes because you have to qualify for world events and can also be promoted [into] or relegated out of the top pool of teams.
"That adds context to one-day cricket and I think it's important because, beyond the World Cup, that will add value in the eyes of the fans."
The A-League football competition enjoyed a unique interaction that attracted fans, including the Western Sydney Wanderers, because they were credited by their players for adding to the atmosphere – and intensity of games – with their chanting and singing. But Sutherland countered his organisation had worked hard to engage fans to support – and enjoy – three formats of cricket.
"We encourage fans to come along and enjoy their cricket," he said. "We have three formats of the game and we know, and understand, in our segment analysis that, broadly speaking, the fans look at [each format] differently.
"They like to, for example, dress up and have fun at a one-day match, at a Twenty20 match the crowd is more likely to be family-oriented, younger and more skewed to the female audience, while we get a more traditional crowd who attend Test matches.
"We're conscious that we make sure we provide a really good and unique entertainment proposition for our fans, whether it's a Big Bash League match or the traditional long form of the game."
Cricket Australia said plenty of tickets had been sold for the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne and beyond. The India-Pakistan World Cup match at the Adelaide Oval in March was already sold out.
