"Diamond Club at $20,000 per seat" - Lalit Modi slams ICC over ticket prices for India vs Pakistan 2024 T20 World Cup match

Former Indian Premier League (IPL) commissioner Lalit Modi has expressed displeasure over the International Cricket Council (ICC) setting a high ticket price for the India vs Pakistan match at the upcoming 2024 T20 World Cup. He claimed that tickets for the much-awaited fixture go up to $20,000 (approximately ₹16.60 lakh).

India and Pakistan will lock horns with each other at Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York on June 9. With USA being the co-host for the ICC event, Modi opined that the focus should be on the expansion of the game over earning profits through expensive ticket pricing.

He did not mince his words while targeting the ICC, even calling the apex council International Council of Crooks. Taking to the microblogging platform X, Modi wrote:

"Shocked to learn that @ICC is selling tickets for Diamond Club at $20000 per seat for the #indvspak WC game. The WC in the US is for game expansion & fan engagement, not a means to make profits on gate collections. $2750 for a ticket It’s just #notcricket #intlcouncilofcrooks."

The upcoming 2024 T20 World Cup will be hosted by USA and West Indies. The event kicks off with a clash between USA and Canada at Grand Prairie Stadium in Dallas on June 1.

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"We will plan against him" - Pakistan captain Babar Azam on Virat Kohli

Virat Kohli stole the show with his batting exploits when India and Pakistan squared off at the T20 World Cup in 2022. The veteran batter remained unbeaten on 82, helping the Men in Blue clinch a famous four-wicket win.

Speaking about how Pakistan will prepare for their 2024 T20 World Cup encounter with India, skipper Babar Azam mentioned that the side would make a plan to get the better of Kohli this time around.

Babar said during a media interaction:

"As a team, you always plan against different teams and according to their strengths. We do not plan anything against one player. We plan for all 11 players. We do not know much about the conditions in New York and we will plan accordingly. He [Virat Kohli] is one of the best players and we will plan against him as well."

It is worth mentioning that Pakistan have just one win against India at the ICC T20 World Cup. They secured their maiden win over their arch-rivals by chasing down a 152-run target with 10 wickets in hand in the 2021 edition.