Asia Cup 2023: Pakistan, India clash witness poor spectator turnout

The Pakistan-India clash is always a blockbuster event, no matter what tournament both the teams are facing each other in, but surprisingly their encounter in the ongoing Super 4 phase game of the Asia Cup 2023 in Sri Lanka's Colombo city witnessed a notably low spectator turnout on Sunday.

The surprising observation was made even after the match between the two rival teams began ahead of Pakistan winning the toss and opting to bowl.

Following a rain interruption in Pallekele, both the Men In Blue and Green Shirts renewed their contest today. In the previous encounter, India scored 266 runs in 48.5 overs. Unfortunately, Pakistan, leading the points table, couldn't commence their chase due to the weather.

While reasons behind the spectators' interest dipping in the otherwise highly-anticipated face-off between the Babar Azam and Rohit Sharma-led teams could vary, the city's unpredictable weather could possibly be a major reason for keeping cricket fans away from the stadium.

In a bid to attract more fans to the matches, the Sri Lankan cricket board had also reduced the ticket prices for matches in the Super 4 stage, but seats at Colombo's R Premadasa International Cricket Stadium remain largely vacant.

For the C and D Upper Block sections of the stadium, ticket prices have been slashed to a mere LKR1,000, while the lower block seats are available at LKR500. This price reduction also extends to today's high-stakes clash between Pakistan and India.

However, this ticket price reduction will not apply to the tournament's final match, where the excitement is expected to reach a fever pitch.