It was one of the most important matches of the second season of the Nepal Premier League on Thursday when Biratnagar Kings faced Lumbini Lions in Qualifier 2, from which the winner booked their berth in the final. However, there were a good number of seats vacant in the second last match of the season.

It was an unexpected scenario at the third of the four playoff fixtures.

The venue was a sold out in Qualifier 1—between Biratnagar and Sudurpaschim Royals—on Tuesday. There were only a few vacant seats in Eliminator—between Kathmandu Gorkhas and Lumbini—on Wednesday. But in Qualifier 2, thousands of seats were empty. The reason: a sudden change in the seating system which saw three zones, which were general zones until the Eliminator, being upgraded into ‘premium’.

When the Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) revealed the ticket price for the second season of the NPL on November 13, the rate for a general ticket during the playoffs and final was Rs1,000, while that of a premium ticket was set at Rs2,000. It was followed in the matches of Qualifier 1 and Eliminator.

Nonetheless, when the fans opened the ticketing app on Wednesday night to book their seats for Qualifier 2, they did not find the ticket price increased, but three general zones were changed into premium zones, a step that saw the price of over 3,000 seats being doubled.

As a result, the CAN, which has been highly praised for its activities and the NPL, started receiving criticisms across social media platforms. It has always been apparent that the majority of the fans who come to the TU International Cricket Stadium have been either students or youths with an average-paying job. As a result, the sudden hike in the ticket price led those passionate fans to think about the economic burden. Further, several fans who could afford the price also decided to not support the sudden changes to the ticketing system.

“Three general zones were upgraded to premium zones as the demand for premium tickets was high,” a CAN official said, when asked about the reason behind the step. But it did not seem to be the case as the seats remained vacant.

“We hope that the seats will not be vacant like today in the final,” the official said under the condition of anonymity.