The eyes of the world will be on Manchester when two of cricket's giants meet in one of the world's most watched sporting events.
The Cricket World Cup, being held in England for the first time in two decades, gets underway on Thursday when the hosts and favourites England take on South Africa at The Oval in London.
Lancashire's Old Trafford is hosting six matches, including one of the two semi-finals.
The showpiece event will be the clash between bitter rivals India and Pakistan on June 16.
Due to the frosty diplomatic relations between the pair, they do not meet in bilateral series, only at major tournaments.
Their last meeting was the final of the Champions Trophy, also held in England in 2017, and attracted a worldwide TV audience of nearly half a billion people.
It was second-most watched cricket game of all time.
It was a major coup for Manchester when it was announced last year that the city would host the game .
There were nearly half a million ticket applications for the 50-overs-a-side match at Lancashire's recently redeveloped 23,000 capacity ground.
There have been reports of tickets changing hands for over £2,500.
The International Cricket Committee (ICC) has vowed to cancel tickets sold on secondary sites.
A special 'fan village' will be opened in Cathedral Gardens in the city centre two days before the match and will be showing the game on a big screen on the day.
There will be a range of multi-cultural food, music and entertainment.
Two days later, hosts and tournament favourites face Afghanistan in another sold-out clash.
It is though the tournament could be worth millions to Greater Manchester's economy.
Extra officers will be out on patrol both around Old Trafford and in the city centre.
Chief Superintendent Graeme Openshaw said officers will be 'firm, fair and friendly'.
"We are looking forward to welcoming fans to the Manchester during the tournament and know they’ll be bowled over with what the city has to offer," he added.
"With India versus Pakistan on Sunday 16 June, we will be hosting one of the most eagerly-anticipated matches of the tournament.
“There was a large demand for tickets for this match and it sold out shortly after going on sale. Therefore we’d request people not to travel to the venue if they don’t have a ticket.
“A fan zone will be established in Cathedral Gardens for this fixture, where the match can be viewed on a big screen, giving people the opportunity to watch the match in an outdoor environment among other spectators.
“It’s expected Manchester will be busier than usual on Sunday 16 June, so we’d advise people to bear this in mind when making travel arrangements.
“We encourage all fans to get behind their team responsibly and know their boundaries.
“Expect firm, fair and friendly policing. We are not out to spoil your fun, but we will not tolerate criminal behaviour.
“As always, we advise the public to remain vigilant and to report any suspicious behaviour or activity.”
Managing director of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2019 Steve Elworthy said: “We have seen from our ticket applications just how big the demand for this summer’s ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup is and we are delighted to make the tournament more accessible than ever through the City Celebrations.
“The British public always get behind global events and our City Celebrations allow fans up and down the country, as well as visiting fans, to come together to celebrate the Cricket World Cup, regardless of whether they’re attending a fixture or not.
“The support from our host cties has been phenomenal, and we’re delighted to be able to continue the strong partnerships with the ground-breaking fan engagement plan throughout the tournament.”
