<\/p>\nListen to this article<\/span>\u00a0|\u00a0<\/span>4 mins<\/span><\/p>\n<\/button>info<\/title><path class=\"icon-main-color\" d=\"M12 0a12 12 0 1 0 0 24 12 12 0 0 0 0-24Zm-.226 3.225a2.039 2.039 0 0 1 2.155 1.924v.193a1.998 1.998 0 0 1-2.155 2.149 2.029 2.029 0 0 1-2.146-2.15 2.039 2.039 0 0 1 1.955-2.122h.193l-.002.006Zm3.227 15.525a.75.75 0 0 1-.752.75H9.75a.75.75 0 0 1-.75-.75v-1.5a.75.75 0 0 1 .752-.75h.748V12h-.75a.75.75 0 0 1-.75-.75v-1.5a.75.75 0 0 1 .752-.751h3a.75.75 0 0 1 .75.752v6.75h.75a.75.75 0 0 1 .75.749L15 18.75Z\"\/><\/svg><\/button><\/div>\n<div aria-live=\"polite\" aria-atomic=\"true\">\n<p><strong>Mumbai, India \u2014 <\/strong>For Indian cricket fans travelling to Sri Lanka this weekend, the opportunity to watch their team take on archrivals Pakistan in the T20 World Cup has come at the cost of inflated airfares, soaring hotel prices and a long wait for matchday tickets.<\/p>\n<p>But these are mere sacrifices that thousands are willing to make to witness the most heated rivalry in the sport as it unfolds on Sunday at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo.<\/p>\n<section class=\"more-on\">\n<h2 class=\"more-on__heading\">Recommended Stories<!-- --> <\/h2>\n<p><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">list of 2 items<\/span><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">end of list<\/span><\/section>\n<p>Fuelled by a decades-long fraught political relationship, cricket encounters between India and Pakistan are among the biggest spectacles in sport \u2014 often framed as bloodthirsty contests of national pride.<\/p>\n<p>For the first time in the history of the World Cup, geopolitical tensions threatened to put the marquee contest in doubt until Pakistan\u2019s government reversed its order for a boycott of the match.<\/p>\n<p>While the near-last-minute U-turn revived excitement, it came at a price for the Indian supporters making late travel plans. Pakistan\u2019s participation was confirmed only six days before the fixture, triggering a sharp surge in airfares from several Indian cities.<\/p>\n<p>Fans who booked their air tickets weeks in advance, too, paid significantly higher fares due to the significantly higher demand surrounding any India-Pakistan match, which is commonly deemed the most lucrative fixture in cricket.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI paid a premium of approximately 50 percent compared to the usual rates,\u201d Aditya Chheda, a finance professional from Mumbai, told Al Jazeera. \u201cThis was despite booking a month in advance and opting for a layover instead of a direct flight.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4311865\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-4311865\" style=\"width:770px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-arc-image-770 wp-image-4311865\" src=\"https:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/54ba0ff8-67bb-4a70-9360-622e5fd17267-1770997837.jpeg?w=770&resize=770%2C730&quality=80\" alt=\"Chheda is one of thousands of Indian fans who have travelled to Colombo [Courtesy of Aditya Chheda] \" fetchpriority=\"low\"\/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-4311865\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Chheda is among thousands of Indian fans who have travelled to Colombo for the blockbuster fixture [Courtesy of Aditya Chheda]<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2 id=\"flight-hotel-prices-skyrocket\">Flight, hotel prices skyrocket<\/h2>\n<p>A nonstop round-trip journey from India\u2019s western metropolis Mumbai to Colombo, which typically costs approximately $275, went upwards of $1,000 two days before the match.<\/p>\n<p>Similar fares were spotted for nonstop journeys from Bengaluru in southern India, while round-trip nonstop flights from Chennai to Colombo \u2013 a route that takes only about an hour and 20 minutes \u2013 had surged to at least $550, up from its usual fare of $165.<\/p>\n<p>Planning ahead helped Bengaluru resident Parth Chauhan secure deals at a good price, but his friends accompanying him to Colombo had to pay a steep premium \u2013 three times the usual cost \u2013 after booking closer to the match date.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_2351369\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-2351369\" style=\"width:770px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-arc-image-770 wp-image-2351369\" src=\"https:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/20230910_151526-1694339334.jpg?w=770&resize=770%2C578&quality=80\" alt=\"A quarter full R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo, Sri Lanka.\" fetchpriority=\"low\"\/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-2351369\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Known as the home of Sri Lankan cricket, the R Premadasa Stadium will host India vs Pakistan on Sunday [File: Hafsa Adil\/Al Jazeera]<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Accommodation costs rose sharply as well. Tariffs at five-star hotels in Colombo ranged between $400 and $1,000 per night from Saturday to Monday, when most spectators were expected to fly in and out.<\/p>\n<p>Chauhan, who works in a cybersecurity organisation, had to wait a whopping four hours in a virtual queue to buy match tickets, but he insists the hassle was worth the wait, as he gears up to watch India play abroad for the first time.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s an opportune moment, and there is a lot of exuberance to witness this because it\u2019s a historic fixture,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>For a lucky few, the surprise came not from the difficulty of securing tickets but from their unusually low price. Piyush Nathani, an IT professional from Bengaluru, paid only $5 for the fixture, which draws millions in broadcast, sponsor and advertising revenue.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis is the cheapest ticket I\u2019ve ever purchased. Just $5 to watch a World Cup match, that too of the magnitude of India vs Pakistan, is a steal,\u201d said Nathani, who has travelled with a group of six friends.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4311902\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-4311902\" style=\"width:770px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-arc-image-770 wp-image-4311902\" src=\"https:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/6b9826aa-8c76-4617-b56b-db37014be0a8-1770999182.jpeg?w=770&resize=770%2C770&quality=80\" alt=\"Nathani has followed the Indian cricket team across several stadiums in Asia [Courtesy of Piyush Nathani]\" fetchpriority=\"low\"\/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-4311902\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Nathani has followed the Indian cricket team across several stadiums in Asia [Courtesy of Piyush Nathani]<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2 id=\"more-than-a-cricket-match\">\u2018More than a cricket match\u2019<\/h2>\n<p>Having been part of the Ahmedabad crowd in 2023 that saw India beat Pakistan in a 50-over World Cup group game, Nathani is relishing the chance to watch Sunday\u2019s match in a neutral venue, where fans from both countries are expected to be present.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe feeling of beating Pakistan is something money cannot buy,\u201d added the 29-year-old.<\/p>\n<p>Like Nathani, Chheda has also travelled abroad previously to watch Team India. The 32-year-old watched India lift the 2024 T20 World Cup in Barbados and now wants to \u201cpick up where I left off\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen there\u2019s a World Cup, the first thing Indian fans hope for is to beat Pakistan,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWinning the World Cup is the biggest target, but beating Pakistan feels like a moral victory \u2013 it\u2019s more than a cricket match.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><br \/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Listen to this article\u00a0|\u00a04 mins info Mumbai, India \u2014 For Indian cricket fans travelling to Sri Lanka this weekend, the opportunity to watch their team take on archrivals Pakistan in the T20 World Cup has come at the cost of inflated airfares, soaring hotel prices and a long wait for matchday tickets. But these are […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":12145,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12144","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-asia-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12144","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=12144"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12144\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/12145"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=12144"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=12144"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=12144"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}