Twenty20 cricket is back
Source -
The England and Wales Cricket Board today announced that advance ticket sales have already topped the 80,000 mark.
The England and Wales Cricket Board today announced that advance ticket sales
for the Twenty20 Cup have already topped the 80,000 mark - nearly a third of the
total audience at matches last summer - a full two weeks before the tournament
is due to start on Friday 2 July.
The unprecedented demand for tickets means that the competition is already on track to attract more spectators than 2003 when a total of 250,000 people came through the turnstiles to watch the tournament in its first year.
The game between Surrey and Kent at the Brit Oval, reduced to a 6,000 capacity due to reconstruction works, has already sold out, while over 10,000 tickets have already been sold for the London derby, Middlesex v Surrey, at Lord’s on Thursday 15 July.
Hospitality sales, another key indicator of interest, have also been strong with a third of all group games now sold out. This includes an impressive 1,000 hospitality places sold for the derby match between Yorkshire and Lancashire at Headingley on Wednesday 14 July.
Tom Harrison, ECB Marketing Manager, said, “We are delighted. Many counties are entering their major sales drives now so I’ve no doubt that more matches will sell out in the next couple of weeks. My message to fans is, ‘buy now to avoid disappointment!’”
“Domestic cricket has not had an advance ticket sales culture in the past and it is something we are very keen to create – which makes these figures even more pleasing. Our aim this year has been to increase attendance over last year and we are certainly on track to achieve this.”
The ECB also today announced Thomas Cook as the Twenty20 Cup’s third official partner, alongside npower and Admiral. The one-year deal forms part of a three-year agreement which sees Thomas Cook become ECB’s official tour operator. Competitions to win either holiday prizes or tickets to future Twenty20 Cup games will be conducted at selected Twenty20 Cup matches, and Thomas Cook also aim to bring special holiday discounts to cricket supporters in the future.
Ophthalmic lens manufacturer SOLA International, which will be represented by its Teflon EasyCare brand, has been announced as an official supplier to the competition.
The major innovation this year from ECB’s broadcast partner, Sky Sports, is to
have umpires miked up to the Sky commentary team so that explanations can be given
for decisions on air - the first time this has ever happened in the UK. Player
microphones will also be used in the same way as last year.
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