IND vs SA: Bangladesh caught selling ODI World Cup 2023 tickets in black in Kolkata

India, the first team to qualify for the semi-finals of the 2023 ODI World Cup, will play South Africa at Eden Gardens in Kolkata on November 5.

The Bookmyshow app (L) shows that the match between India and South Africa is sold out.

Calcutta: Even as the Kolkata Police have arrested a number of persons for black marketing of ODI World Cup 2023 match tickets for India and South Africa to be held at the Eden Gardens in the last few days on November 5, a Bangladeshi national has entered the business for quick money, in anticipation of high prices. octane collision in the City of Joy. The incident took place on Thursday evening (November 2) when the person involved approached this correspondent via WhatsApp. The message came from a mobile number in Bangladesh with the country code +880.

Called Ishmam (as per his WhatsApp profile), the person crossed the border for Bangladesh’s two ODI World Cup 2023 matches at the iconic Eden Gardens. However, Bangladesh lost both their matches in Kolkata against the Netherlands and Pakistan and were eliminated in the semi-finals.

According to bookmyshow.com, ICC’s ticketing partner for the 2023 ODI World Cup, tickets for the clash between India and South Africa on Sunday have been sold out. Ishmam reported that he has a friend who can manage tickets in C1, D1, B1, L1 and G1 (upper blocks at Eden Gardens) for Rs 5000. When checking the website, the original ticket price in G1 block is Rs 900 (five times less than requested). The ticket prices for the other blocks mentioned above are also believed to be around Rs 900.

As the local authorities are on high alert against black marketing of tickets, Ishmam asked this correspondent to pay 50 percent in advance after which he will send the login details for Bookmyshow. Using the login details provided, the correspondent must change the pass in his name and confirm the booking. After the confirmed booking, the remaining money must be paid.

When asked if this is part of a scam, Ismam replied: “You can trust me. If you need it (tickets), you can arrange it through a face-to-face deal. Counterfeit tickets, tickets sold at higher rates, have been one of the main talking points in this competition.

Earlier this week, the Kolkata Police arrested a person for selling tickets worth Rs 2,500 for a whopping Rs 11,000. A total of twenty tickets were seized from him. Something similar happened before the India-Australia encounter in Chennai when local police arrested four persons. Things went a step further before the India-England encounter in Lucknow when police busted a racket selling fake tickets through a website.

As for the action at the stadium, the Men in Blue come to Kolkata after securing their spot in the semi-finals following a huge 302-run win over Sri Lanka in Mumbai on Thursday. India is the only undefeated team in the tournament with seven wins.

South Africa is second with six wins from seven matches and will certainly reach the last four together with the host countries. Australia, New Zealand, Afghanistan and Pakistan are competing for the last two spots.