The upcoming ODI World Cup 2023, jointly organized by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and the International Cricket Council (ICC), will see a unique approach to ticket sales. The organizers have opted for a staggered release of tickets, aiming to address the high demand for tickets to India’s matches while mitigating potential technical challenges.
Recognizing the immense popularity of cricket in India and the fervor of fans for their national team’s matches, the BCCI and ICC have devised a phased ticketing strategy. The objective behind this approach is to avoid technical glitches that might arise due to the overwhelming traffic on the ticketing website when multiple matches are made available simultaneously.
This approach has been shaped by the lessons learned from the previous edition of the ODI World Cup held in England in 2019. During that tournament, the website selling tickets for India’s matches experienced severe technical issues due to the sheer number of fans trying to secure their seats. The staggered ticket sale strategy is aimed at preventing a recurrence of such issues and ensuring a smooth ticketing process for fans.
A reliable source familiar with the situation elaborated, “The staggered sale strategy has been carefully designed to effectively manage the anticipated surge in demand. It is the most efficient way to handle the ticketing process and ensure the satisfaction of fans.”
In an official statement, the ICC emphasized that the phased approach aims to cater to the high demand for tickets while ensuring fairness and accessibility for as many fans as possible. The ticket sales will occur in several phases, with tickets for matches not involving the Indian team being released before those for India’s matches.
For India’s matches, the tickets for games against Australia, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh will be available from August 31, preceding the complete availability of tickets for other matches. Subsequently, tickets for the remaining India matches, including the highly anticipated clash against Pakistan, will be accessible in subsequent phases.
The timeline for ticket sales includes:
- August 25: Non-India warm-up matches and all non-India event matches
- August 30: India matches at Guwahati and Trivandrum
- August 31: India matches at Chennai, Delhi, and Pune
- September 1: India matches at Dharamsala, Lucknow, and Mumbai
- September 2: India matches at Bengaluru and Kolkata
- September 3: India match at Ahmedabad
- September 15: Semifinals and Final
Cricket enthusiasts are encouraged to register for tickets starting from August 15, marking the beginning of an exciting journey towards witnessing the world’s top cricket players in action on the grand stage of the ODI World Cup 2023.
