Karachi:
The PCB has fixed the starting prices for Champions Trophy tickets at PKR 1,000, which is as cheap as Rs 310 in Indian currency, according to an internal document of the cricket board obtained by PTI. However, the document does not include suggested ticket prices for the matches in Dubai which has been chosen as a neutral venue for India's matches and perhaps even for a semi-final and final if Rohit Sharma's men qualify for these knockout matches. The list in possession of PTI showed that PCB has kept the lowest priced ticket for the General Enclosure at 1,000 Pakistani Rupees for all matches in Karachi, Lahore and Rawalpindi.
But for the Pakistan-Bangladesh match in Rawalpindi, the general entry fee has been increased to PKR 2,000 (INR 620) and for the semi-final to PKR 2,500 (INR 776).
The PCB has also kept VVIP tickets for all matches at PKR 12,000 (INR 3726) but for the semi-finals it is 25,000 (INR 7764) for the same enclosure.
The premium tickets cost PKR 3,500 (INR 1086) for the matches in Karachi, 5000 (INR 1550) for the match in Lahore and 7000 (INR 2170) for Pakistan's match against Bangaldesh in Rawalpindi.
The PCB plans to keep the prices for VIP enclosures at PKR 7,000 for Karachi, 7,500 for Lahore and 12,500 for the Bangladesh competition.
The number of tickets on sale to the general public will be 18,000, but it is still not clear how many tickets one person can buy at a time and whether tickets will also be available at the box office or only online.
Normally, as per ICC event rules, the host nation sells tickets for the matches and keeps the revenue from gate fees and also the revenue from the sale of hospitality boxes. This is in addition to the hosting costs paid by the ICC.
As ICC has chosen Dubai as a neutral venue to host matches in India, an insider confirmed that the PCB believes it has the right to control the receipts and sales of hospitality boxes for the Dubai games, including the blockbuster match against arch-rival India on February 23.
The PCB plans to retain the gate fees from the Dubai Games as the Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) will receive operational costs, including ground rent.
“The ECB will of course advise the ICC and PCB on ticket prices for different enclosures in Dubai and what prices should be charged for the sale of hospitality boxes before any announcements are made,” the insider said.
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