16 April 2005	Saturday	06 Rabi-ul-Awwal 1426

Please Visit our Sponsor (Ads open in separate window)

NEW DELHI, April 15: After waiting hours and in some cases days for a ticket to the high-profile Indo-Pak one-dayer cricket match here on Sunday, only a few were rewarded for their patience on Friday. Just a few hundred fans today managed to lay their hands on elusive tickets for Sunday’s match after braving scorching sun and tight security arrangements, but there were many more who had to go back empty handed as these were sold out within hours.

While tickets of denomination Rs 11,000, Rs 5,000 and Rs 1,000 were sold through Parliament Street branch of Central Bank of India, those costing Rs 400 and students passes valued at Rs 200 were sold through its Kashmere Gate branch.

Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA) had earmarked 12,150 tickets for general public for last one-dayer to be played at Ferozeshah Kotla ground.

Out of these, it handed over 2,050 tickets to Pakistan Cricket Board for fans from that country. Another 3,000 tickets for DDCA League Club members meant that only 7,000 tickets were left for common fans.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf will be among a host of dignitaries who will watch the match.

Though ticket counters opened only at 10.30 am, fans who did not want to take any chances had lined up from last evening itself.

“I had camped here from five pm last evening for this ticket,” said a happy and bleary-eyed Rishipal Singh, the first to buy a ticket at Parliament Street branch.

“I am going to gift it to my son Ankur who had performed very well in his Class 11 examination,” he said.—Agencies