The Hindu : Sport / Cricket : Ticket sales: suit filed against TNCA

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Dec 01, 2005

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Sport - Cricket

Ticket sales: suit filed against TNCA

Special Correspondent

CHENNAI: A civil suit to restrain the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association (TNCA) from selling tickets for the India-Sri Lanka Test match, scheduled to start on December 2, and from holding cricket matches in Chennai during monsoon has been filed in a city court.

Admitting the petition, filed by M. Suresh Babu, the II Assistant City Civil Judge, I. Pandurangan, ordered notice to the TNCA and posted the matter to December 1 for hearing.

When the matter came up for hearing, D. Lingeswaran, counsel for the petitioner, submitted that a perusal of monsoon pattern recorded by the Meteorological Department during the past 15 years showed that Tamil Nadu received at least 40 per cent of its annual rainfall during the Northeast monsoon, between October and December. Coastal districts of the State received about 60 per cent of their annual rainfall during the period.

Under the circumstances it was not prudent on the part of the TNCA to organise cricket matches during the period.

The petitioner contended that the TNCA cancelled a one-day match between India and New Zealand on October 23, 2003 due to rains. Similarly, the last day's play of a Test match between India and Australia was washed out on October 18, 2004. The November 22, 2005 One-Day International between India and South Africa too was abandoned due to rains.

These cancellations led to widespread dejection among spectators who had paid ticket sum ranging from Rs. 200 to Rs. 8,000 for watching the event, Mr. Babu said, adding that in none of these occasions did the TNCA refund the ticket fare.

Now, inspite of the monsoon being vigorous and cyclonic rains having been forecast, the Association was planning a Test match. He sought a stay on ticket sales for the match, and sought a permanent injunction restraining the TNCA from organising cricket matches from October to December.

Though Mr. Pandurangan observed that the suit espoused a reasonable cause, he said no interim injunction could be granted in the eleventh hour, that too without hearing the other side. He permitted counsel to issue telegraphic notice to the TNCA.

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