ENG vs NZ, World Cup 2023: Virender Sehwag shows BCCI the way after pictures of empty Narendra Modi Stadium go viral

Add as a preferred source on Google

ENG vs NZ, World Cup 2023: Virender Sehwag has come up with an innovative idea after pictures of empty seats at the Narendra Modi Stadium during the England vs New Zealand World Cup 2023 opener went viral on social media.

The opening match of a global event like the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 usually witnesses a lot of fans turning up at the stadium, however, that was not the case in the first match between defending champions England and New Zealand at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.

Foreign commentators and media houses were quick to point out the empty stands. Former England captain Nasser Hussain even suggested that the BCCI should have featured India in the opening fixture to make the first game a full house and set the tone for the entire event which would be played over a span of 45 days.

Even though Ravi Shastri and Indian presenters tried to cover up the situation by suggesting that close to 35,000 people were present at the venue and the massive size of the stadium was giving the impression of it being empty, the reality of the situation was blatantly visible on the TV screens and pictures doing the round.

Virender Sehwag suggests way to fill stadiums in non-India matches

Former India opener Virender Sehwag did not beat around the bush and stated that interest in ODI cricket was fading. He said more fans could come to the Stadium late in the evening, but suggested the BCCI give free tickets to school kids and college going students.

"Hopefully after office hours, there should be more people coming in. But for games not featuring Bharat, there should be free tickets for school and college children. With the fading interest in 50 over games, it will definitely help that youngsters get to experience a World Cup game and players get to play in front of a full stadium," Virender Sehwag wrote on X.

Reports have suggested that seats at the Narendra Modi Stadium remained vacant despite 40,000 women across Ahmedabad getting free tickets and food coupons to watch the match from the venue.

On the Captains' Day on Wednesday, India captain Rohit Sharma was bullish about the stadiums being jam-packed for all the matches.

"One thing I can assure, which I am pretty sure everyone knows, is that people are going to love this tournament here; the stadium is going to be jam-packed because people here in India love their cricket as much as they love their team, but they love their cricket as well. But rest assured, it’s going to be a great tournament.," he said at the pre-World Cup 2023 event.