Former Pakistan captains Wasim Akram and Shahid Afridi urged cricket fans to come to the stadium to watch the T20 series between Pakistan and West Indies.
The evening game at the 32,000-capacity stadium had barely 4000 spectators, although the Pakistan Cricket Board has allowed full attendance after months of Covid-19 restrictions.
Read also: Pakistan beat West Indies to take T20I series
Akram was ‘incredibly sad’ seeing the empty stadium.
“Incredibly sad to see an empty stadium in Karachi for #PAKvWIt20, especially after the performance of the Pakistan team last month. I’m pretty sure I know why but I want to hear from you! Tell me, where is the crowd and why??” he tweeted.
“It is really disappointing to see such low attendance of people for these matches. A PCB official said, “We were expecting a big turnout after the ticket prices were reduced to almost half of the normal denomination.”
But when the turnout was disappointing, there is no doubt that people had to face a lot of difficulties in coming to the stadium.
In pictures: Pakistan vs West Indies, 2nd T20I match
“People say why don’t cricket fans come to the stadium. But coming to the match is like a test for us. We have to park our cars some distance from the stadium and walk all the way and then wait in long queues to get in. This is discouraging for cricket fans.”
Bilal had come to watch the second match with a group of teenagers and Meham, one of the girls wearing a green Pakistan T-shirt, had the same complaint.
“There’s a lot of security and checking and just waiting so long in the enclosures gets really tiring,” she said.
Interestingly, PCB chairman Ramiz Raja, in a video statement last week, promised better facilities and experience for cricket fans coming to the ground for international matches or Pakistan Super League games.
Ramiz actually announced that the PCB would soon open a fan engagement department for the convenience of fans, but apparently on Tuesday it was clear that much work remains to be done to this end.
As usual, security is suffocating for matches as hundreds of policemen, commandos and paramilitary rangers have been deployed outside and inside the NSK, prolonging the process for spectators to enter the enclosures.
Residents living around the stadium area have also complained that roads are being closed, blocked with containers and making life difficult for them.
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