The Hindu : Sport / Cricket : Better facilities at Kotla

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Saturday, Nov 03, 2007
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Better facilities at Kotla

NEW DELHI: The Ferozeshah Kotla will offer better facilities to spectators apart from becoming more accessible during international events.

The Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA) president Arun Jaitley promised cheap tickets for students and club cricketers for the forthcoming Test against Pakistan this month.

It was Mr. Jaitley’s idea to throw open the gates for Friday’s warm-up match between Delhi and Pakistan. Free entry attracted around 15,000 spectators, much to the surprise of the organisers.

“We had not anticipated such a huge turnout,” admitted Dr. S. S. Sareen even as police turned back more than 5000 cricket fans due to security reasons. The police force inside the stadium was not well equipped to handle such a big crowd.

Students formed majority of those who thronged the venue this morning. “We thought why not allow free entry for the benefit of those who could not otherwise afford to buy tickets,” said Mr. Jaitley.

Happy with the response, Mr. Jaitley has decided to keep the ticket rates for the Test match low. The season tickets will be priced at Rs. 250 and 400 for students and club cricketers and Rs. 750 and 1200 for the grandstands. The club house ticket rates will be at Rs. 7500.

“The idea is to have a full house and we can achieve that by keeping the tickets at an affordable price for the common man,” said Mr. Jaitley, who also informed that the venue would be floodlit before the Indian Premier League matches next April. There are plans to build a swimming pool and residential facility for the visiting domestic teams and the umpires. — Special Correspondent

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