Virat Kohli shakes hands with Pakistan’s Shadab Khan following the T20 World Cup cricket match between India and Pakistan in Melbourne, Australia. AP/PTI
The India-Pakistan clash at the 2027 ODI World Cup has received 8.4 million ticket requests, despite the match being scheduled at a venue that can accommodate only 34,000 spectators. The contest will be played at The Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg on October 10 and has emerged as the tournament’s most sought-after fixture so far.
The match has received 8,397,294 requests through the ongoing ticket ballot, according to the International Cricket Council (ICC). The World Cup final, which will also be held at The Wanderers Stadium on November 21, has received 7,900,944 requests, or nearly 79 lakh, making it the second-most sought-after match so far. The ICC has received more than 120 million requests from fans in 193 countries, with 2.8 million unique fans registering their interest in attending the competition. The 2027 ODI World Cup will be co-hosted by South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia. The tournament opener on October 7 will be a repeat of the 2023 final, in which Australia beat India in Ahmedabad. Pakistan’s last victory over India came in the 2022 Asia Cup. The top three teams from each group, along with the best fourth-placed team, will advance to the Super 7 stage.
The demand far exceeds the stadium’s capacity. The response to the ticket ballot has been high across the tournament. India-Pakistan is among the most anticipated fixtures in cricket and one of the tournament’s biggest revenue-generating matches. However, India have dominated their recent meetings, winning their last nine encounters. The top four teams from that stage will qualify for the semi-finals.