India vs West Indies: Thiruvananthapuram pitch expected to be a batting paradise

Thiruvananthapuram, Dec 4:  With 81 per cent of the tickets for the second T20I between India and West Indies already sold, cricket buffs can expect the Sunday evening game to turn out to be a run-fest.

Speaking to the media, Greenfield International Stadium pitch curator Biju said that two pitches have been readied and has been cleared by the ICC representatives.

"This is going to be a pitch where lots of runs can be expected. Even with likely rains, the pitch will favour the batsmen," said Biju.

This is the third international fixture at the state-of-the-art Greenfield Stadium, lying next to the Technopark campus and this has been a lucky venue for India as they have won both the matches they have earlier played at the venue. Last year despite the rain, India comfortably defeated West Indies by nine wickets in an ODI played on November 1. Before that, the Men in Blue had defeated New Zealand by six runs in a T20I game on November 7, 2017.

The Kerala Cricket Association (KCA) has informed that till now, 81 per cent of the tickets have been sold online for the second T20I and they are confident that all the tickets will be sold by the time the match starts.

Even though the capacity of the stadium is over 40,000, this time 32,000 tickets are only put up for sale.

Now the only thing the spectators will be hoping is to see local lad Sanju Samson get a chance to play and score runs.

Green protocol will be in place at the stadium and no plastic material would be allowed on the match day.

"All the caterers have been informed about this and they will not be allowed to serve anything in plastic material, as the green protocol has come into place," said venue manager Vinod Kumar.