My grandparents had an apartment in Glenwood, Durban, so when we visited them, my parents would drop me at the cricket ground with a deck chair and a bit of pocket money for the day. It was a different form of babysitting, but one I loved. I mean, this was Kingsmead, and South Africa was playing cricket. I’d been starved of international cricket until I was 12, so any chance after that was a treat.
That was also where I was introduced to cricket under floodlights, back in the Benson & Hedges days. Wanderers is now my home ground, but Kingsmead remains special. I took my children to a packed stadium for a T20 match there in December, so when plans to head down for days one and two of this year’s Test started circulating among my mates, I was all for it.
The week started when I bumped into Merv Hughes at the airport — what a legend he is — and was followed by some banter with a busload of Aussies at the hotel. The excitement was building.
I woke on Friday to glorious sunshine and a perfect day’s cricket ahead. But when we arrived at the grounds, there was nothing. No whistles, no crowd, no queues. Since then, the matter has gone viral: the lack of support, Durban as a venue, the death of Test cricket. Having sat through two days of cricket, read the articles and reflected on it all, here are my suggested solutions.
1. Day-night Tests
Much was made of the light at the stadium and of playing with a pink ball rather than a red one, and Shaun Pollock, the darling of Kingsmead, was keen to endorse it. If we’re going to play with the pink ball, we might as well make Kingsmead a day-night Test venue and open the grounds for after-hours entertainment. Changing the playing times would make an immediate difference. Even on the slowest Test days, the crowd usually picks up once people knock off work.
2. More shade, please
The moans about the lack of shade at Kingsmead are justified. Luckily we sat in the pricier south stand seats, but it looks as if an hour or more on the east side would be torture. Having day-night cricket would partly solve this problem, but the east stand needs a rethink and serious investment. I don’t think it’s changed since I first visited in the 1990s. Picture an amazing awning or roof structure to rival, say, Adelaide Oval. As things stand, the scoreboard is being used as a shady perch for 50-odd survivors.
3. Set the scene and bring the ‘gees’
Even if you’re in the sun, where are the jacuzzis? The braais? The jumping castles? Centurion is also a bare-banked venue, but it packs out on a nice summer’s day. At Kingsmead there was just no imagination. Test cricket doesn’t need the cheap thrills of T20, but that doesn’t mean it shouldn’t strive for maximum entertainment.
4. Work your audience
Durban has one of the largest South Asian communities outside Asia. Most are multigenerational South Africans with a deep love of the game, and plenty have a soft spot for their family’s country of origin. We should be prioritising subcontinental Tests there. Having India, Pakistan or Sri Lanka at Kingsmead would fill the stands.
The other audience to tap is schools. Pack the stadium with schoolchildren; there are far worse ways for a child to spend a day. Give them a maths project about the scorecard or a creative writing task … get creative.
5. Tap into the history
A smaller but important point: Kingsmead has some of the most amazing cricket history in the country. During the lunch break you might fancy a wander through the little museum on site — except that it wasn’t open during the game we attended. Why? Let’s open it up and get some talk going in the stands and on the grass.
Aside from this, the beer was flowing, the food was fine and parking was easy. The ingredients are all there. Kingsmead deserves a full house, so let’s give people a reason to come.
Gareth Stobie, by e-mail
