The Andhra Cricket Association and the district administration are gearing up for the upcoming T20 cricket match between India and South Africa, which is scheduled to be held at the ACA-VDCA YSR Cricket Stadium, on June 14.
This will be the fourth T20 match that will be held in Visakhapatnam, said ACA Treasurer G. Gopinadh Reddy.
The day-and-night match will be held from 7 p.m. and preparations are afoot to ensure that the match is conducted without any glitches, said ACA CEO M. Venkat Siva Reddy.
The stadium will see a full-capacity crowd of 27,251. A major part of the tickets would be sold online as well as at offline counters at the stadium. Ticket rates will vary from ₹250 to ₹5,000, Mr. Gopinadh Reddy said.
For online sales, bids have been asked from various online platforms such as BookMyShow and Paytm and these will be finalised shortly, he said.
As per the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) norms, only 10% of the seats should be reserved for complimentary passes. The sale of tickets will begin at least two weeks before the match.
ACA officials are expecting a houseful show, as this is going to be the first international cricket match in the city after the COVID-19 pandemic. Officials said COVID-19 protocols would be implemented for players and officials.
The city has so far held three T20s, 10 ODIs, two Test matches and 10 IPL matches.
Commissioner of Police Ch. Srikanth spoke about the security arrangements for the match. “Going by the previous experience, over 1,100 policemen drawn from various wings will be deployed. Anti-sabotage checks will be done at the stadium and at the players’ place of stay. We are also drawing up a fresh plan for parking and traffic management, so that visitors are not inconvenienced,” he said.
The police are also mulling to follow a staggered timing system to avoid traffic jams.
GVMC Commissioner G. Lakshmisha, Joint Collector K.S. Swaminathan, VDCA president Vishnu Kumar Raju, DCP Garud Sumit Sunil and other officials from the district administration, ACA and VDCA were present.
