Published: Sep 30, 2018, 05:02 PM (IST)
Edited: Sep 30, 2018, 05:02 PM (IST)
A tussle over complimentary tickets between the BCCI and Madhya Pradesh Cricket Association (MPCA) could result in Indore losing out on hosting the 2nd ODI between India and West Indies.
According the new BCCI constitution, state assiciations have to put 90 percent tickets of the total capacity of their stadiums for public sale. This leaves 10 percent complimentary tickets with the associations. Holkar Stadium has a capacity of 27,000 meaning MPCA will have 2700 free passes to distribute.
This is where the two bodies are clashing with BCCI demanding its share of complimentary tickets. MPCA says if it does oblige BCCI, there will only be just 350 hospitality tickets left for them,
“The managing committee of MPCA has decided that it is not possible to organise the second ODI between India and West Indies in Indore if BCCI doesn’t back down from it’s demand of complimentary tickets. We have intimated BCCI,” MCA joint secretary Milind Kanmadikar was quoted as saying by PTI on Sunday.
“We cannot accept BCCI’s demand for hospitality tickets. We have only 7000 seats in the pavilion (hospitality) gallery and going by 10 percent, we would be left with only 700 seats. Now if we give five percent of that, we are left with only 350 hospitality tickets,” Kanmadikar said.
“Even we have to cater demands of our members, various government agencies. We also have only 10 percent complimentaries in our state unit’s constitution but from that we can give the amount (five percent from each gallery) BCCI wants,” he said.
However, BCCI says they don’t want the match to be shifted. ‘We don’t want to shift the match from Indore but if they create issues we have to prepare an alternate venue. This is pure blackmailing tactic from Kanmadikar,” a senior BCCI official was quoted as saying.
The official further claimed that there’s more to the issue. ”During India’s tour of West Indies in 2017, Milind Kanmadikar was supposed to be the administrative manager but CoA chief Vinod Rai scuttled it as he felt that it was a glorified junket for state unit officials. Kanmadikar has not forgotten that slight and this is his way of getting back,” the official said.
