Huge crowd of fans waiting for tickets outside Barabati StadiumImage Credit source: Screenshot/X
Virat Kohli’s two centuries, Ruturaj Gaikwad’s first century and two consecutive high-scoring thrilling matches have increased the excitement about the India-South Africa series. This series was already eagerly awaited but the tough competition between the two teams has thrilled the fans and that is why there is a rush for tickets for every upcoming match. But due to this fight, a major accident was averted in Cuttack, Odisha.
actually India-South Africa After the end of the ODI series, 5 T20 matches will also be played. Even though there will not be giants like Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma in it, but due to continuous fierce matches, the excitement for this series is equally high. In such a situation, wherever the matches are taking place, fans are struggling a lot to get tickets.
Fight for tickets, stampede-like atmosphere
The first match of this series is to be played in Cuttack on 9th December and the sale of tickets for it started from Friday 5th December. Apart from online, tickets are also being sold offline, but due to this, a huge crowd of fans gathered outside the stadium, due to which an atmosphere of chaos, pushing and stampede was created. In the video going viral on social media, it is seen how there is a long queue to buy tickets and during this time a stampede like situation is also created. Policemen were also seen trying to control the crowd.
Massive turnout at Barabati Stadium today as fans line up for IndiaSouth Africa T20 tickets.
One hope @dcp_cuttack, @cpbbsrctc , @Satya0168 have ensured proper crowd-control arrangements, because the visuals below tell a different story–something essential is missing to keep pic.twitter.com/heRx96QDFT
— Soumyajit Pattnaik (@soumyajit) December 5, 2025
no accident happened
Looking at the kind of situation seen in these videos, it is clear that a major accident could have happened. However, it is a matter of relief that despite such a crowd and jostling, there was no accident of any kind. But this has raised questions on the methods of Odisha Cricket Association. All this is happening at a time when, just a few months ago, there was a stampede during the celebrations after RCB’s title win in Bengaluru and 11 people were killed. In such a situation, now eyes will also be on BCCI whether it issues any instructions to other state associations including Odisha regarding such situations.