Bangladesh vs Zimbabwe 2020, 1st T20I: BCB changes ticket selling policy due to Coronavirus concerns
What's the story?
The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has decided to undertake a preventive step against the Coronavirus outbreak, altering its ticket-selling policy for the first T20I match between Bangladesh and Zimbabwe. BCB sold only one ticket per person and targeted to sell only one-fifth of the available tickets to cut down on large public gatherings.
The background
Coronavirus has had a massive impact on global sporting events. The virus, which originated in China, has quickly spread to the other nations, with south Asian nations being the latest to record positive cases for COVID-19. While the Pakistan Super League and Road Safety World Series 2020 are underway without any changes in Pakistan and India respectively, Bangladesh has decided to take action against the virus with the restricted sale of tickets for the Bangladesh vs Zimbabwe 1st T20I match.
The heart of the matter
As reported by ESPNCricinfo, Jalal Yunus, the chairman of the board's media committee, confirmed that BCB has tried its best to avoid large public gatherings. However, it is being reported that the board has not made any alterations for the ticket selling policies for its upcoming events. There is one more T20I match scheduled between Bangladesh and Zimbabwe while the Asia XI vs World XI series is also set to take place in the country later this month.
Besides, a concert is also scheduled to commemorate their Father of the Nation, Sheikh Mujibur Rehman's birth centenary. Given how the ticket sales were restricted for this match, it is likely that BCB may change its plans for the next fixtures. It is noteworthy that the Everest Premier League of Nepal had been postponed for the same reason earlier this month.
What's next?
It will be interesting to see how the organizers plan for the upcoming big matches in Bangladesh.