Not going the Dhoni way: Aussies come up with genius tactic to counter stump mic volume in South Africa

Apart from the fabulous cricket that was on display, India's tour of South Africa will also be remembered for the banter between players that was audible due to the wonderfully loud stump microphones.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni's rant to Manish Pandey will be spoken about for years to come. Not just that, fans were treated to several other such gems by Virat Kohli and his men.

Keeping this in mind, the Australian cricket team sent out a request to mute the volume of the stump mics before the start of the ongoing Test in Durban. Captain Steve Smith's plea, though, fell on deaf years and the match kick-started on Thursday with the stump mics on full boom.

Never ones to take things lying down, the Aussies decided to take matters into their own hands. Taking a leaf out of the legendary Adam Gilchrist's book, the visitors used the power of the stump mic to promote Cricket Australia sponsors Qantas and XXXX.

Gilchrist had done a similar thing during a match in 2006, where he gave his team's sponsors some free on-air advertisement to frustrate local sponsors.

During the second day of the first Test against South Africa at Kingsmead, Durban, Australian wicket-keeper Tim Paine was heard saying, “Well done! Earning yourself an XXXX. It’s the best beer in the world!” Another Aussie player was heard asking an on-field umpire: "How good is Qantas? (since the umpires are sponsored by Emirates)"

All-rounder Mitchell Marsh, though, refuted claims that this was a sign of protest. "I wouldn’t say it was a protest. I’d say it was a great opportunity to give our sponsors a bit of a plug,” he said. “Qantas, thank you for getting us here safely. The stump mics really, for us players on the field, are irrelevant.”

Flop show in first Test at Durban

Meanwhile, the ongoing first Test between South Africa and Australia in Durban has failed miserably to attract spectators to the stadium so far. It was billed as one of cricket's great battles but it hasn't translated into a rush on the turnstiles. The contest features the world's second and third-ranked teams, both bristling with world-class fast bowlers and stroke-playing batsmen. Yet the crowds have been negligible.

The official attendance on the first day on Thursday was 3,957. It improved slightly to 4,865 on Friday but there were not enough people to create a vibrant atmosphere in the 18,000-capacity ground. Ticket prices are low, starting at 60 rand ($5.03) for students and pensioners and 100 rand ($8.39) for adults. The most expensive seats are 230 rand.

At those prices spectators are likely to spend more on food, drink and parking than the admission price. Test crowds -- or the lack of them -- have been a concern in South Africa, and Durban in particular, ever since South Africa staged its first post-isolation Test in the coastal city in 1992/93.

Despite frequently being allocated the prime Boxing Day holiday slot, single day crowds have seldom exceeded 10,000. The current match is being played at an unusual time of year for Test cricket but Altaaf Kazi, Cricket South Africa's head of communications, said the turn-out was disappointing. "We have done all the usual promotion," he said. "It is not as though Durban people don't support cricket. One-day games attract capacity crowds."

One theory is that people prefer to watch Test cricket on television, with live ball-by-ball coverage on both free-to-air and subscription channels. There is also a significant counter-attraction on Saturday with the local Sharks team playing a Super Rugby match with an afternoon kick-off at the nearby Kings Park stadium. South Africa's poor position after two days was a further deterrent to potential spectators.

Although there has been extensive promotion on regional radio, newspaper coverage has been patchy and confined to the sports pages. A Saturday newspaper had a preview of the Sharks game as its main sports article, with a report on the cricket in a lesser position.

Next week's second Test is being played in Port Elizabeth, another city where attendances usually are poor, before the series moves to Cape Town and Johannesburg, where bigger crowds are likely.

(Inputs from PTI)