Melbourne, Oct 6 (NationPress) Cricket Australia (CA) confirmed on Monday that the public ticket allocations for the men's T20I match between Australia and India at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) have been completely sold out, more than three weeks prior to the event set for October 31.

Previously, public allocations for 12 days of the five-match Ashes series between Australia and England were also fully exhausted. CA noted that the overwhelming demand for the Melbourne T20I illustrates the immense interest surrounding India’s white-ball tour, which has now exceeded 175,000 tickets sold across eight matches.

“The anticipated large crowd for the Melbourne T20I is a clear sign of the remarkable enthusiasm for this series. We are excited to witness fans engaging with the Australia vs. India rivalry so passionately, and we are committed to providing a world-class experience both on and off the field,” stated CA CEO Todd Greenberg.

“Selling over 175,000 tickets with 13 days left until the first ODI in Perth is an outstanding achievement. It reflects the intensity of the rivalry and the fervor of fans across the nation,” he added.

CA also announced that AFL member tickets for the MCG T20I will be available on Monday, while MCC member tickets will start selling on Tuesday. Public allocations for matches in Sydney and at Manuka Oval are already sold out, while tickets for the Adelaide ODI and Gabba T20I are filling up quickly, with less than 5,000 tickets remaining for each.

India’s white-ball tour of Australia kicks off with the ODI series opener on October 19 at Perth Stadium, followed by matches at Adelaide Oval and Sydney Cricket Ground on October 23 and 25, respectively.

This will be followed by a five-match T20I series starting on October 29 at Manuka Oval in Canberra, with additional games taking place at the MCG on October 31, Bellerive Oval in Hobart on November 2, Gold Coast Stadium on November 6, and The Gabba in Brisbane on November 8.

The last time India visited Australia for a bilateral ODI series, they suffered a 2-1 defeat in 2020/21 but managed to win the following T20I series by the same margin on that tour.

India will be captained by the newly appointed Shubman Gill for the ODIs, with stalwarts Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli included in the squad as well, while Suryakumar Yadav will lead the T20I segment of the tour.