HYDERABAD: Thousands of cricket fans in Hyderabad, who went to purchase the tickets for the T20I match between India and Australia scheduled to be held at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, here on Sunday, left with gruesome experiences.
Many of the fans who were standing in queues from Wednesday night as soon as the information of ticket sales was announced, received injuries while some even landed in the ICU beds at hospital.
The multitudes in anticipation to reach the ticket counter, were unmanageable. The craze of cricket made the fans stand in the queue even as it rained cats and dogs. Most of them opted leaves and some left their business for the love of cricket to buy the tickets.
Lathi charge by the police led to the stamped, where hundreds of people left with bruises and grievous injuries as those standing for hours in the queue were chased out by the police officials. Those who resisted to stay back had been threatened to be put in the police van, even women were not spared.
The incident at the Hyderabad Cricket Association’s (HCA) box office, was a result of enthusiastic fans thronging the Gymkhana ground as they were away from cricketing action in Hyderabad for past three years, (last match held on December 6, 2019, T20 between India and West Indies).
Not wanting to miss the opportunity, fans started forming queues from 10 pm on Wednesday. Lapses in planning, mismanagement, misinformation at the HCA’s end, led to the suffering of thousands of fans.
This T20 series between India vs Australia which will be played on the turf of Hyderabad, scripted on a wrong note because of the mismanagement.
Sadhana Kulluri, from Trimulgherry, who took leave from her office as she learnt that the tickets were on sale said, “I reached here before 8 in the morning, joined the queue, now (around 2pm ) police personals chased us out.”
Sirisha Pallapu, a student, “there is no proper information, we don’t even know what is happening inside the gate of the ticket counter, even after several hours of waiting here we have not even reached the gate. Suddenly police chase us out.”
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