Lehmann dismisses Moeen’s Ashes crowds comments

Australia coach Darren Lehmann has refuted Moeen Ali’s assertion that the Ashes crowds in Australia were “quite disappointing”

^{"I thought the Ashes crowds were fantastic" - Lehmann}

Australia coach Darren Lehmann has dismissed Moeen Ali’s assertion that the Ashes crowds in Australia were “quite disappointing”.

Last week the England spinner - who had a series to forget Down Under - stated that he previously harboured concerns for the future of Test cricket but “Australia really opened my eyes.”

“The crowds were quite disappointing in general," said Moeen.

"There were a couple of days - Boxing Day, the first day of the series - but even when they won the Ashes there weren't that many people celebrating.

“That's when I thought, 'Actually, we're struggling a bit'. We're very lucky in England - after being all around the world and seeing the crowds everywhere else, we've got the best fans, we've got full houses most of the time.

“But I think the Big Bash had bigger crowds than the Ashes. That's great for T20 but for Test matches it's a massive worry.”

However, Lehmann, who oversaw Australia’s 4-0 victory, believes Moeen’s comments are wide of the mark. He told cricket.com.au:

"I thought the Ashes crowds were fantastic, our crowds were great.

^{Moeen suffered a tough tour with both bat and ball}

"I think they broke all records, whether they were at the ground or watching, streaming or listening on the radio. 

"It was an outstanding Test series. I’m not sure where that comes from, from Moeen, but that’s his opinion.

"From my point of view as a cricket fan, I loved it. It was great.

"I thought it was intense cricket. The games could have gone either way.

"Four-nil wasn’t probably a fair reflection of how England played. I thought they played quite well.

"For me, I think Test cricket is alive, and we only had to see the way people turned up to the whole game throughout the summer."

The statistics seem to back up the Australian.

866,732 fans attended Ashes Tests throughout the tour - the most since the 1936-37 series - while the Adelaide Oval set a new record attendance, surpassing the total that attended the Bodyline Test over six days in 1933.