When World Series Cricket (WSC) initially struggled to win over audiences, Kerry Packer decided to heavily promote it using fast bowlers like Dennis Lillee, Michael Holding, and Andy Roberts at the forefront.
That, in turn, brought in further innovations. Batsmen began to wear more protective clothing. And after David Hookes was hit by a bouncer and had his jaw broken, helmets began to be used for the first time in a tournament this high-profile.
Although WSC placed greater emphasis on limited-overs cricket than had previously been in Australia, for much of the first season, crowds and audiences were disappointing. While the official Test matches, featuring largely untested Australian players, attracted a large number of spectators, it was reported that Packer glumly counted the number of cars parked outside the grounds used for his matches.
Behind the scenes, though, the tide was slowly turning.
The West Indies, shorn of big stars, began to negotiate for a separate WSC tour of the Caribbean. And Pakistan, who has initially taken a hard line, were forced to compromise after a second-string team was heavily beaten by England. They began to include Packer players again. New Zealand, too, showed willingness to compromise.
Meanwhile, South Africa, excluded from international cricket since well before the Gleneagles Agreement, were only too happy for their leading players to be able to play on the world stage.
WSC also upped the ante on the home front, signing up more Australian cricketers and creating a second-tier tour that took the game to provincial centres around the country, giving back-up players game time.
Remote regions that rarely saw big games now were given their chance, and interest began to grow.
Packer then managed to get the decision to ban the rebels from using the traditional home of the game in the country. The Sydney Cricket Ground overturned, and even managed to persuade the government of New South Wales to foot the bill for the installation of floodlights.
Doors began to open for the breakaway series, which adopted a strategy of focusing on the markets in Melbourne and Sydney. The hard work was about to get its rewards.