Tickets for next month’s Women’s ODI World Cup in India and Sri Lanka are now available, with the ICC opening a four-day pre-sale window from 19:00 IST/SLST on 4 September via tickets.cricketworldcup.com and Google Pay. A second batch will be released on 9 September at 20:00 IST/SLST (14:30 GMT).
In a statement the ICC confirmed entry prices will start at INR 100 (about US $1.14), calling it “the most affordable pricing for any ICC global event in history.” Adult seats at that level are rare at major tournaments; the governing body hopes the low threshold will draw first-time spectators as well as seasoned followers.
Eight sides – India, Sri Lanka, England, Australia, Pakistan, South Africa, New Zealand and Bangladesh – contest the trophy across five grounds: Colombo, Guwahati, Indore, Visakhapatnam and Navi Mumbai. The hosts meet in the opener on 30 September in Guwahati, while the final, set for 2 November, is still awaiting a confirmed venue.
The prize fund stands at US $13.88 million, almost four times the purse on offer in New Zealand three years ago. Administrators see that figure, plus the cut-price tickets, as a double statement about the game’s direction. A senior ICC official noted quietly that selling out the smaller venues is “a realistic but important target” – a reminder that attention will focus not only on the cricket but also on turnstile numbers.
For players, the timing works. The WPL wraps up in early September, allowing India’s big names – Harmanpreet Kaur, Smriti Mandhana, et al. – enough breathing space before the main event. England’s women have a short preparatory camp in Colombo and will rely on recent sub-continental experience from the T20Is in Bangladesh last winter.
All that said, it still comes down to who handles early-season spin and late-monsoon weather better. Ticket sales merely set the stage; the cricket will decide if this bold pricing experiment pays off.
