We can't use e-tickets this time around for World Cup, physical ticket needs to be retained: BCCI Secretary Jay Shah

The cricket-crazy country of India will be solely hosting an ODI World Cup for the first time later this year. Excitement levels are going through the roof as fans are waiting to witness the 10-team showpiece event across 10 venues. Demand for hotel rooms has surged over the past few weeks after the fixtures of the tournament were announced.

Fans are eagerly waiting for tickets to be released so that they can book their seats for the matches they wish to witness. However, Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) Secretary Jay Shah stated that there would be no provision for e-tickets for the mega event. Fans will have to carry physical tickets to the stadiums to get entry. They will be able to book their tickets online but will have to pick up physical tickets following that.

To ensure that fans have a hassle-free experience while collecting tickets, Shah suggested that there will be seven-eight centers where redemption of physical tickets will be possible. He said that BCCI will start distributing e-tickets for bilateral series first as a dry run before implementing the same in multi-nation events.

"We can't use e-tickets this time around but will ensure to have physical tickets redemption at 7-8 centers well in advance. But physical ticket needs to be retained," Shah was quoted as saying by India Today.

"It will get difficult to manage e-tickets at high-capacity venues like Ahmedabad and Lucknow. Our plan is to start using e-tickets more in bilaterals first and then take it to multi-nation events like the World Cup."

BCCI and ICC will announce ticket prices soon

Jay Shah mentioned that ticket prices and other details relating to it will be announced soon by the International Cricket Council (ICC) and BCCI.

"We had a word with the state associations today on the tickets. 90 percent of the associations came with the manifests and 1-2 didn't have it ready. We have given them time till Monday to sort it out. The ICC and BCCI will then jointly announce ticket pricing and everything. The ticketing partner is also almost sorted," Shah concluded.

The first match of the upcoming World Cup is going to be played between England and New Zealand in Ahmedabad on October 5.