'Don't take fans for granted': Venkatesh Prasad calls for BCCI action on ODI World Cup

The long-awaited ICC ODI World Cup is one month away, as India will be hosting the tournament for the second time since the tournament started. The two-time champions will host the tournament opener on October 5, 2023, between England and New Zealand. As India has the biggest fanbase for cricket in the world, there have been huge demands for tickets for the upcoming matches.

3 things you need to know 

• Team India currently plays in the Asia Cup before the 2023 World Cup 
• India vs Pakistan ODI World Cup clash will take place on October 15, 2023
• There has been a huge demand for tickets 

Off-field issues ahead of the 2023 World Cup

The One-Day International World Cup will begin on October 5. Much of the buildup to the event has focused on the teams competing, their respective strategies and goals, and the current form and fitness of important players. But problems off the field, such as schedule shifts for a variety of reasons, have plagued the competition for some time. One of the most recent challenges concerns the availability of tickets for supporters. Fans have reported experiencing frustrating wait times of around 5-6 hours while attempting to acquire match tickets online, often leaving them empty-handed.

Former Indian fast bowler Venkatesh Prasad brought attention to these ticketing issues on Monday by expressing his frustrations on social media.

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Venkatesh Prasad hopes BCCI will make things easier for the fans 

Talking about the issue, the former Indian fast bowler made two X ( formerly Twitter) posts in which he urged the BCCI to make things a little more feasible for the fans. He also urged BCCI to look into the issues, hoping that the process could have been made better and easier. He posted: 

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…

— Venkatesh Prasad (@venkateshprasad) September 4, 2023

Also Read: India beat Nepal by 10 wickets, qualify for Super 4 stage in Asia Cup 2023

It’s never been very easy to get World Cup tickets. But this time has been harder than before. Could have been better planned and I feel for the fans who have had high hopes and struggled to get tickets. I sincerely hope one of the most important stakeholders, the Fans get their…

— Venkatesh Prasad (@venkateshprasad) September 4, 2023

Numerous supporters have taken to social media to express their frustration over the difficulty of obtaining tickets. They have accused the BCCI of making less than 10,000 seats available for reserving at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, despite the stadium's enormous capacity of over 130,000.