Television coverage of cricket had changed very little in the seasons leading up to World Series Cricket. A lone camera over the bowler’s arm at one end which only offered a shot of the batsman’s back at the change of over. With the arrival of WSC, Mr. Packer brought the perspective of a television network executive to the game and wanted things changed.
The result was multi-camera coverage, including cameras from behind the bowler at BOTH ends of the ground, close-ups and slow motion replays and the advent of ground microphones, to bring not only the sights, but the sounds of the game into the viewers’ lounge rooms.
Distant human forms that had only ever existed in the shadows of their peaked caps now had faces, features and even voices. The viewer was now invited right in close to the heat of the battle. It was to be technology like the game had never seen, but still there were basics to fix. Deprived of the recognised cricket venues, how could WSC transform the centre of football grounds into world class cricket pitches?
The answer was under wraps….
Photo: Kerry Packer and the Channel 9 television broadcast team (Image: Viv Jenkins Collection)
