CHENNAI: It was the morning of June 28, 2024. Unlike the peak summer months of April and May, the heat in Chennai had mellowed down significantly, even as the humidity made up for it. In fact, there were even some regular evening showers in the week leading up to the date. On that Friday, however, the sun was bright and shining. And out in the middle of the MA Chidambaram Stadium were the captains of India and South Africa — Harmanpreet Kaur and Laura Wolvaardt, respectively — for the toss of a Test match. Having completed the ODI-leg of the tour in Bengaluru, the tourney had moved to Chennai for the one-off Test and three T20Is. The iconic venue on the shores of the Bay of Bengal was hosting a Women’s Test for the first time in 48 years — an India women’s game for the first time in 17 years, and an international women’s game in eight. Indian women’s cricket, despite shattering multiple glass ceilings since the beginning of the 2020s, hadn’t come to Chennai. Bengaluru had its moment earlier in the year when the city hosted the first half of the 2024 Women’s Premier League, and was received well. That the city has a WPL team in Royal Challengers Bengaluru, which went on to win the title, only helped during the ODI leg. Chennai, however, isn’t the same.
The city boasts a rich sporting heritage and culture that is welcoming even to the opponents; the venue has been an integral part of many historic cricketing moments. Irrespective of who plays at the venue, Chepauk crowds show up, and they appreciate good cricket. Yet, there was a sense of anticipation as to how the crowd would be for the women’s Test and T20Is. With the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association opening the stands for free during the Test match, fans were expected in the afternoon and during the weekend, but on day-1, there were some doubts.
However, it did not take long for Chennai to show up. As India won the toss and opted to bat, fans slowly started coming in. One hour into the first session, Shafali Verma and Smriti Mandhana had settled in and started taking South Africa bowlers to the cleaners. With every boundary, every six, every fielding effort, the crowd of around 5,000 fans only got louder. That the India openers were going at five runs per over only helped. By the time both of them reached their centuries, spectators were on their feet, cheering as loudly as they could. They did not just turn up for day-1. The trend continued through the weekend, with Sunday seeing a much bigger crowd. South Africa’s Sune Luus and Wolvaardt were grinding out in the middle, they sat back and appreciated the ebbs and flows of a good day’s play. So much so that despite the loss, Wolvaardt had only good things to say about the Chepauk crowd.
“It’s awesome, I think, to have that many people at a Test match was amazing,” she said in the post-match presser. “And it’s awesome how supportive they are of the opposition as well. Definitely cheering and clapping when any of us sort of reached a milestone. And it keeps it entertaining as well. I think that that third day felt like a long time when I was batting out there, but it was nice to just sort of look out and they were singing songs as well at one point, which was quite funny,” she added.
It only got better for the T20I series which teams shared 1-1. More than 10,000 fans turned up for all three games, including the second that was washed out because of rain (12,000 for the first match, 13,000 for the second and close to 15,000 for the third). While India opener and vice-captain Mandhana was the most popular among the fans, every player, irrespective of the team, was cheered for the smallest sign of good sport. The Indian team even did a lap of honour, thanking the fans who showed up after the final game on Tuesday.
Since the WPL was announced, a major chunk of India matches were played in Mumbai, and the crowd had consistently come including a 40,000-strong attendance at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai. During the second season of the WPL, Bengaluru, and to an extent, New Delhi got their share of games with fans coming to support the teams from their respective cities. However, with the ODI World Cup to be held in India next year, it was time for the BCCI to move the carnival to the rest of the country and see how the fans respond. On this occasion, Chennai, and Chepauk, did not let women’s sport down.