Free Entry to the Mirpur Test: BCB Opens North and South Galleries Without Tickets for Bangladesh-West Indies Match
The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has given spectators good news ahead of the Bangladesh-West Indies Test in Mirpur. Watching the match from the gallery will cost no money and require no ticket. The BCB is offering free entry to two specific galleries.
The first match of the two-Test series between Bangladesh and the West Indies begins on October 28 at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Mirpur. On all five days of this match, spectators will be able to sit in the North and South galleries and enjoy the game free of charge.
The BCB confirmed the arrangement in a press release. The opportunity will remain until the last day of the match, meaning entry without tickets to the two designated galleries will be available throughout the entire Test.
However, the free entry facility is not for all galleries. It will not apply to the Grand Stand, the Shaheed Jewel and Shaheed Mushtaq stands, or the VIP and hospitality areas.
In other words, spectators will not need to buy tickets to watch from the designated North and South galleries. Anyone wishing to sit in other galleries will not get this free facility and will have to enter under the previous arrangements.
Ahead of the home Test series against the West Indies, the BCB's initiative is being seen mainly as a step to increase the presence of cricket lovers at the ground. Drawing spectators to the gallery for Test cricket is one of the board's main challenges, and free entry is one way to meet that challenge.
Many cricket lovers have welcomed the decision on social media. Many believe the chance to watch an international Test match without ticket costs will be especially attractive to students and young spectators.
A Tigers Test at Mirpur means a battle of patience between bat and ball. Watching that five-day contest from the ground is a different experience from watching on television, and this time the door to that experience has been opened in two galleries.
The series consists of two matches. The first Test starts in Mirpur on October 28. As the series will begin with this match, the board is expecting crowds in the galleries from the very first day.
Spectators are advised that, as seating in the two free-entry galleries is limited, it will be better to reach the ground early on match days. Keeping in mind which galleries the facility applies to will help avoid inconvenience at the ground.
All in all, the BCB is trying to create a festive atmosphere in Mirpur around the first Test of the West Indies series. Playing in front of packed galleries will also be extra inspiration for the cricketers on the field.
