Cuttack: Public sale of tickets started on Saturday at three counters of Barabati Stadium for the T20 match between India and Sri Lanka scheduled on December 20.

Cricket fans turned up in large numbers at the counters, with hundreds of them queuing before the counters much before dawn.

"I am enthused to sit in the gallery and watch the match with my son after the double century by Rohit Sharma against Sri Lanka in the second ODI at Mohali. I will miss Virat Kohli though," said Sankarsan Behera of Naraj, who had managed to get two tickets. Each person can buy two tickets at a time.

Ten platoons of police were deployed to maintain law and order during the public sale of tickets which will also continue on Sunday.

"I am enthused as the India-Sri Lanka T20 is the second opportunity to watch an international match here after the India-England ODI on January 19," said a local cricket fan Anandjit Patnaik, who will watch the match from the special enclosure.

OCA working committee chairman Dhiren Palai said: "As many as 12,529 tickets have been made available for sale at the counters after 9,310 tickets were sold online and 10,564 sold through our affiliated units."

While tickets for gallery No. 1 and 3 have been fixed at Rs 600 each, the tickets for gallery No. 2 and 4 are priced at Rs 500 and Rs 400 for gallery No. 6 and 7.

Similarly, the price of tickets for special enclosures is Rs 3,000, while a ticket in the corporate gallery would cost Rs 8,000. Similarly, a ticket in the AC box in gallery No. 4 and the New Pavilion would cost Rs 5,000.

The cricket body has insured the ground and other properties of the stadium, along with spectators (public), for Rs 20 crore for the match.

"The deal has been inked accordingly with the National Insurance Company by paying the required one-time premium of around Rs 13 lakh," Palai said.