ODI World Cup: BCCI to release 400,000 tickets in next phase of ticket sales

New Delhi, Sep 6 (IANS) Acknowledging the high demand for tickets for the 2023 Men's ODI World Cup, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) said it is set to release 400,000 tickets in the next phase of tournament’s ticket sales.

BCCI also added the general sale of tickets for all matches of the tournament will be starting from September 8 at 8pm IST, following its discussions with the hosting state associations.

“This measure is aimed at accommodating as many passionate cricket fans as possible, ensuring their participation in this historic event. Fans are encouraged to act promptly to secure their tickets, as tickets are expected to be in high demand, given the immense global interest in the event,” it added in a statement.

Fans can purchase tickets by visiting the official ticketing website at https://tickets.cricketworldcup.com, and will be notified of the further sale of tickets in the next phase in due course.

“The BCCI deeply acknowledges that fans are the heartbeat of the tournament, and their unwavering passion, engagement, and contributions are pivotal to the success of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023,” further said the statement.

This development comes after many fans faced issues in booking their tickets for the mega tournament on the official ticketing platform BookMyShow, especially for matches involving the Indian team.

Ticket sales began with non-India games from August 24 for Mastercard users while general public got to access tickets on sales from August 25, followed by India matches sales from August 29 to September 3. The sales for semi-final and final tickets will happen on September 14 and 15.

Many fans had taken to social media that they had to experience long queues to get tickets, to the extent of five-six hours and beyond, only to be told that the tickets were sold out. Plus, speculations emerged on social media that a small percentage of seats were made available to the fans for the marquee India-Pakistan clash for October 14 in Ahmedabad.

There were also reports of a website named “viagogo” which showed sales of tickets for many matches, including for India-Pakistan match, at excess of 50 lakhs and beyond, prompting strong reaction from former India pacer Venkatesh Prasad.

“I urge the @BCCI to have more transparency in the World Cup ticketing system and not take fans for granted. Definitely in a stadium like Ahmedabad, for an #IndvsPak clash more than the sold 8500 tickets need to be available when the capacity is 1 lakh + .”

“Likewise for all other matches , a larger chunk needs to be for the fans. It will be more fulfilling if the diehard fan is kept happy and not deprived of this opportunity instead of reserving a large chunk for corporates and members,” he tweeted that time.