NEW DELHI: Cricket fever gripped Cuttack as a massive crowd gathered outside Barabati Stadium to buy tickets for the first T20I between India and South Africa, scheduled for December 9.

What started as a routine offline ticket sale turned into pure mayhem, as a viral video captured chaotic scenes outside the stadium. Eager fans, desperate to secure seats for the India–South Africa T20I, were seen pushing, sprinting and squeezing through any gap they could find just to inch ahead in the swelling queue.

In the widely shared clip, the situation escalated moments after the ticket counters opened. The crowd surged forward in a wave, with voices rising, tempers flaring and people stumbling in the rush.

Several fans were seen jumping the line and barging in from the sides, while others sprinted in from the back to cut across the crowd - creating a frantic, almost stampede-like atmosphere that raised serious safety concerns.

The opening T20I marks the beginning of the final stretch of India's home campaign against South Africa on Tuesday.

After the series opener, the action shifts to New Chandigarh on December 11, before moving to Dharamsala on December 14 and Lucknow on December 17. The tour will conclude with the fifth and final T20I in Ahmedabad on December 19.

ODI series on the line

India look to avoid another humiliating series defeat to South Africa in the must-win third ODI in Visakhapatnam on Saturday. A repeat of the Raipur-like missteps could hand South Africa the series, following their convincing 2-0 win in the Test leg.

Back-to-back series losses are unthinkable for India, especially amid perceptions of a dressing room pulling in different directions.

A win in this final match would help silence critics, but it will once again require Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma to shoulder the bulk of the responsibility.