India and Pakistan cricket fans flock to Colombo, windfall for tourism

Published

4 months ago

February 13, 2026

Prices of flights and hotel bookings to Colombo, Sri Lanka, have soared as thousands of fans flock to the city to watch India play Pakistan on Sunday in cricket’s Twenty20 World Cup.

The neighbouring countries and cricket rivals are due to meet during the group stage of the tournament, which is being co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka, after Pakistan reversed a decision to boycott the match earlier in the week.

The game at Sri Lanka’s largest stadium is sold out with roughly 35,000 tickets sold and ahead of the match most hotels in Colombo have doubled their prices — the cost of a room has climbed as high as $660 a night from a typical price tag of about $100-$150 per night, multiple booking sites showed.

After the match was finalised this week, last-minute bookings led to fuller flights from major cities like Chennai and Delhi, according to three Colombo travel agencies.

Flights from Chennai, which is about one and a half hours away, have more than tripled to around $623 – $756 while flights from Delhi are up more than 50% to roughly $666.

Nalin Jayasundera, President of Sri Lanka Inbound Tour Operators (SLAITO) said hotels were booked out. “Most fans are coming on all-inclusive packages that could be $1,500-$2000 or even higher depending on ticket, hotel, and flight prices,” Jayasundera said.

Tourism is the third largest foreign exchange earner for Sri Lanka, famous for its ancient temples, pristine beaches, and lush tea plantations.

It is hoped that hosting more sporting events could boost Sri Lanka’s economic growth, which is recovering from a severe financial crisis and a recent cyclone, which killed 650 people.

Buddhika Hewawasam, chairman of the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority, told Reuters that in the first 10 days of February, roughly 20% of the 100,000 visitors to Sri Lanka were there for the India-Pakistan cricket match.

The island nation is hoping to position itself as a neutral venue for matches between political rivals.

“This is clearly showing confidence in Sri Lanka as a neutral cricket venue. Whether it’s India, Pakistan or Bangladesh, this is a welcome message to all South Asian countries that they can play cricket in Sri Lanka,” he said.

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India set for bumper New Zealand tour featuring 10 white-ball matches and Two Tests

Published

6 days ago

June 3, 2026

Staff Reporter

India will undertake the biggest-ever international cricket tour of New Zealand later this year, playing two tests, five one-day internationals and five Twenty20 matches against the Black Caps.

India will open the tour with the T20s in late October and early November quickly followed by the ODI series.

The first test takes place at Wellington’s Basin Reserve from November 19 to 23. The second test will be at Christchurch’s Hagley Oval from November 27 to December 1.

“When it comes to cricket – it simply doesn’t get bigger than India and we’re determined to deliver New Zealanders a tour like no other,” said New Zealand Cricket’s Glenn Critchley. “We’re expecting all of these games to sell out.”

After travelling to play four tests in Australia around the New Year, New Zealand will also host Sri Lanka in three ODIs, three T20s, and two tests in January and February, 2027.

The White Ferns women’s team will host Bangladesh for three T20s and three ODIs in December.

No RCB victory parade in Bengaluru as fans celebrate title win indoors

Published

1 week ago

June 1, 2026

Staff Reporter

The passionate fans will not be able to celebrate Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s title defence with the team after the franchise decided against holding a victory parade in the city in order to avoid the crowd frenzy, which led to last year’s deadly stampede.

Virat Kohli once again delivered on the biggest stage as Royal Challengers Bengaluru defended their IPL title with a five-wicket win over Gujarat Titans in the final in Ahmedabad on Sunday, extending his remarkable run of consistency in a format increasingly dominated by ultra-aggressive batting.

Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s second IPL title win came on Rajat Patidar’s 33rd birthday but more than that happy coincidence the skipper was pleased with his team’s start-to-end domination in the league.

The RCB took such a decision also keeping in mind the swearing-in ceremony of newly-appointed Karnataka Chief Minister DK Shivakumar.

Rishabh Pant quits LSG captaincy after IPL 2026 debacle

Published

1 week ago

May 29, 2026

Staff Reporter

Rishabh Pant has stepped down as Lucknow Super Giants captain following the IPL 2026 season. During his two-year stint, LSG failed to secure a playoff berth, managing only 10 wins under his leadership. The franchise finished seventh last season and ended this year at the bottom of the table. He was bought for INR 27 crore and was immediately handed the captaincy baton, but absolutely nothing worked well for the franchise since then.

“Lucknow Super Giants wish to formally announce that Rishabh Pant has requested to be relieved from his captaincy duties with the franchise, and the franchise has accepted the request with immediate effect,” LSG’s statement read.