Mumbai: The ICC T20 World Cup, to be co-hosted by the USA and West Indies, doesn’t get underway before June 2. And the highly-anticipated India versus Pakistan clash is more than three months away.
But the excitement and anticipation over the marquee match has already reached fever pitch.
Tickets for India’s matches against Pakistan (June 9 in New York) and Canada (June 15 in Florida) have been sold out, according to a report in USA Today.
Tickets, however, are available on resale platforms like StubHub and SeatGeek at astronomical prices, with some being offered for Rs 1.86 crore!
As per the ICC website link for ticket sales in the initial phase, minimum ticket price was Rs 497, while the highest-priced ticket was Rs 33,148, excluding taxes. The sport’s governing body mentioned that “no additional fees will be imposed beyond the specified taxes.”
Those assurances have gone out of the window with VIP tickets being offered for Rs 41.44 lakh, including added-platform fee, on one resale site.
The cheapest ticket for India-Pakistan match on StubHub is Rs 1.04 lakh, while on SeatGeek the most expensive ticket for the mega clash is Rs 1.86 crore, including platform fee.
This is more than thrice the highest-priced ticket (Rs 57.15 lakh) offered in the secondary market for the India versus Pakistan match at last year’s ODI World Cup held in India.
In less than two weeks since the first phase of ticket sales for the 2024 T20 World Cup opened on February 22 after a public ballot window, these tickets have entered the resale market. And due to the crazy demand for certain matches, ticket prices have skyrocketed to levels comparable to those seen in the NBA or Major League Baseball.
The average ticket price for the World Series was Rs 91,175, while courtside tickets for the National Basketball Association (NBA) Finals were priced at about Rs 20 lakh.
