From correspondents in India, 09:30 AM IST

From putting up digital scoreboards to keeping bees at bay, preparations are on in full swing to host a one-day cricket match between India and the West Indies here next week. The day-night match will be held Jan 24 at Barabati Stadium.

'For the first time we are placing two huge digital scoreboards so that people do not face any difficulty seeing the scores,' said Ashirbad Behera, the Orissa Cricket Association (OCA) secretary.

'The digital screens will also allow cricket lovers to watch replays of important shots, run outs and other special events of the match,' Behera told IANS. 'Besides, we are providing a new coat of paint to the galleries.'

The players will arrive in Orissa Jan 22 and stay at Mayfair Lagoon Hotel here. Net practices will begin at Barabati Stadium Jan 23, he said.

Tickets will be sold from 9 a.m. on Jan 21 to beat the rush, he said. Barabati Stadium has about 30,190 seats and nearly half of these will be reserved for the public. OCA-affiliated units will get 7,950 tickets, he said.

Ticket prices will range from Rs.400 to Rs.1,500.

A swarm of bees had created trouble in the stadium Jan 11, disrupting a Ranji Trophy match between Orissa and Assam for several minutes.

'We are taking steps to ensure that no such incident recurs during the match. The OCA has given priority to removing bees from the stadium,' Behera said.

'More than 70 journalists from India and abroad are likely to cover the match and we will help them with telephones, fax machines and computers with Internet connections,' he said.

Barabati Stadium had hosted its first Test match between India and Sri Lanka in 1987. The first one-dayer there was played between India and England in 1982. The last ODI that has been played in the stadium was in 2003.

(Staff Writer, © IANS)