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India's failure to qualify for the third ICC World Test Championship final, to be played at Lord's between June 11 and 15, has resulted in a revenue drop of around 4 million pounds (approximately Rs 45 crore/Rs 450 million) for the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), according to a report in the British newspaper The Times.
Anticipating a potential India versus Australia final, the MCC initially hiked ticket prices, expecting high demand from Indian fans.
However, after India's elimination following their series defeat in Australia, the MCC has now reduced prices in a desperate bid to fill up Lord's and avoid the ignominy of hosting the prestigious event in front of empty stands.
Notably, the MCC had drawn widespread criticism last year after only 9,000 spectators turned up on the fourth day of the the Test match featuring England and Sri Lanka.
Now, the ticket prices for the WTC final range between 40 pounds and 90 pounds (approximately between Rs 4,000 and Rs 11,000), which is around 450 pounds (around Rs 5,000) less than the proposed ticket rates for the highly anticipated final between India and Australia.
'Organisers had originally priced tickets at a premium rate, believing India fan demand would outstrip supply, but the absence of India has significantly curtailed the financial windfall expected by Marylebone Cricket Club, underscoring the financial influence of Indian cricket across the global game, the Times report said.
'The decision to be flexible with prices for the World Test Championship final was taken this year, with tickets now being sold at between 40 pounds and 90 pounds -- about 50 pounds cheaper than they had originally been priced, accounting for the loss in revenue,' it added.
The MCC has reportedly refunded the money to members who had purchased the ticket before the price reduction was effected. Besides, the MCC has also decided to sell additional tickets for the final this month, adding hospitality packages to lure fans.
Lord's is hosting the WTC final for the first time as Southampton (2021) and the Oval (2023) were the venues for the two previous summit clashes.
India featured in both those finals, but lost to New Zealand in the inaugural edition and went down to Australia last year.
In the WTC 2025 final, defending champions Australia will face WTC 2023-2025 table-toppers South Africa.
India were on course to qualify for their third WTC final on the trot, but six defeats in the last eight Tests saw them slipping out contention.
India suffered a shocking 0-3 defeat in the home series against New Zealand, followed by a 1-3 loss to Australia in the 2024-25 edition of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series.
Apart from the WTC 2025 final, Lord's will host the third Test of the India-England series in July to be played between July 10 and 14.