Karnataka State Cricket Association secretary Javagal Srinath says bowling on flat subcontinental tracks is easier than handling Bangalore's ticket woes
Karnataka State Cricket Association secretary Javagal Srinath says bowling on flat subcontinental tracks is easier than handling Bangalore's ticket woes
Former India pacer Javagal Srinath yesterday blamed the pandemonium surrounding the World Cup ticket sales and police lathi charge here on the huge gap between demand and supply.
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| Karnataka State Cricket Association secretary Javagal Srinath and president Anil Kumble (right) at Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore yesterday. PIC/SURESH KK |
"This is a high voltage match and there was huge demand. We couldn't meet the expectations," Srinath, secretary of the Karnataka State Cricket Association, told MiD DAY. Thousands were reported injured after police resorted lathi charge in order to control the angry public who had queued up outside M Chinnaswamy Stadium since midnight to buy tickets for the India vs England match on Sunday.
"Bowling on a dull track in the sub-continent was much easier than (handling) this," Srinath said.
More than 30,000 had lined up while only 7,000u00a0 tickets were available. The queue was so long that it completely ringed the stadium. When the tickets were sold out within three hours of the box office opening at 8.30 am, it angered the several thousands who had patiently waited since midnight. Of the stadium's 38,000 capacity, 7000 tickets were given to clubs and a few more for the ICC and its corporate partners. Besides, a major portion had been reserved for the Barmy Army.
Add to it, the fact that the match was moved from Kolkata only on January 25, the KSCA's hands were really tied. Srinath said that the KSCA had requested the ICC to return some tickets.u00a0 "We are hoping to sell them on the day of the match (February 27)," he said.
