“What a circus” – Fans react as pre-sale of India vs Pakistan 2023 ODI World Cup tickets ends within 90 mins
The much-anticipated pre-sale of the high-voltage 2023 World Cup match between India and Pakistan took place on ticketing website BookMyShow at 8 pm IST on Sunday, September 3.
The much-awaited game is scheduled to be played at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on October 14.
As per the official website, the minimum price for the ticket is Rs 2,000. Due to high demand, users were asked to enter a queue with waiting times ranging from at least two hours up to four hours. The website further asked the users not to hit the back button or close the app or website.
In addition, there’s no guarantee of successful ticket booking provided. In the end, the tickets were sold out within 90 minutes.
In a notification, BookMyShow said:
“There are limited seats available and we are experiencing a very high demand currently. There is a congestion ahead on the booking flow as others are processing their seats. We request your cooperation and patience. Thank you!”
It added:
“You’re in the queue at the moment. Tickets are very limited, so as soon as those ahead of you process their transactions and if tickets still remain, you will automatically get your turn. Please wait for the queue to clear. Thank you for your patience! Your estimated wait time is approx. more than 2 Hours.”
A majority of fans on X (formerly known as Twitter) expressed their disgust for the queue, with a few sharing their success stories too. One wrote:
"Ordinary people like us trying to book India-Pakistan tickets on BookMyShow! What a circus waiting."
Here are some of the other fan reactions:
World Cup’s semifinal and final tickets to go live on September 15
Barring Pakistan’s game, all group-stage matches and warm-up games of India have already been sold. The pre-sale of tickets for the semifinals and final of the 2023 World Cup will take place on September 15.
The semifinals are scheduled to be played in Mumbai and Kolkata on November 15 and November 16, respectively. The final will be played at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on November 19.
The Men in Blue will play two warmup games against England and the Netherlands in Guwahati and Thiruvananthapuram on September 30 and October 3, respectively. India will then begin their World Cup campaign against Australia at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on October 8.
Click here to check out the full schedule of the 2023 ODI World Cup.