Ahmedabad: It is going to be another grand event when Prime Minister Narendra Modi will host his Australian counterpart Anthony Albanese at the world’s biggest cricket stadium christened after the Indian PM on March 9.
Though the event will be not as grand as the one organised in January 2020, when Modi hosted the then US president Donald Trump, it is generating quite a buzz.
According to Gujarat government officials, Modi and Albanese will watch the fourth Test match between India and Australia at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on March 9.
Elaborate security arrangements have been made across Ahmedabad as the two PMs are set to attend the opening day of the fourth Test match of the Border-Gavaskar trophy at the mammoth stadium with a capacity of 1.32 lakh spectators.
This is not the first time that the PM is hosting a foreign head of state in his home state Gujarat. Earlier, Modi had hosted Chinese President Xi Jinping, the late Japanese PM Shinzo Abe, Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu and former US president Donald Trump.
Tickets blocked
However, with the two PMs attending the Test match, cricket fans are likely to suffer as nearly half of the tickets for the Day 1 of the match have been reserved for dignitaries, VIPs and top BJP functionaries.
Sources said that cricket lovers in Ahmedabad and other places were not getting tickets for the first day of the Test match, neither online nor from the ticket window at the stadium.
“I want to book tickets for the 4th India-Australia Test at Ahmedabad. But it is showing closed. See pic below. The tickets went live just today. It can't be possible that all the tickets are sold out. Please advise me what needs to be done,' a Twitter user wrote on Thursday.
“The state government is coordinating closely with the Union External Affairs Ministry to ensure that all safety protocols are put into place, even as huge crowds are expected to attend the Test match,” Gujarat government officials said.
The Gujarat Cricket Association (GCA) that manages the Narendra Modi Stadium was tight-lipped over the issue.
GCA officials said some seats have been blocked for the dignitaries who would accompany Modi and Albanese.
Tickets for the India-Australia Test series can be booked online on the ticket booking site bookmyshow.com. The portal shows tickets for the Day One of the Ahmedabad Test were not available.
