CRICKET Australia expects to unearth more scalped tickets ahead of The Ashes series, and the organisation refuses to rule out mass cancellations and re-selling to fight the fiasco.
Already 1100 tickets for the five Tests have been cancelled after being identified as sold at inflated prices, but Cricket Australia cannot say how many other tickets are in the possession of scalpers.
Judging by the high volume of interest on auction website eBay, on which ticket packages attracted bids of up to $1000 today, Cricket Australia's investigation agency faces a big task before the series starts, in Brisbane on November 23.
Cricket Australia chief executive James Sutherland today warned that people who bought tickets from scalpers faced the prospect of having their ticket cancelled at the turnstiles.
"Where people purchase tickets from a scalper at a premium, they're in breach of the terms and conditions, and we will, where appropriate, cancel those tickets," he said.
The cancelled tickets were identified during Cricket Australia's online sales, which began in June.
Cricket Australia re-sold the 1100 tickets, but it is yet to decide what to do with 200 more tickets identified as being sold by scalpers.
The body will seek advice from other sporting codes, such as the AFL and the NRL, and concert promoters to determine the best course of action in dealing with scalped tickets.
Sutherland said it was "quite possible" that other scalped tickets had not been identified.
He also conceded that fans would be angry at having the tickets they bought at inflated prices cancelled - especially those travelling from England - but he said buyers had to beware.
"If you purchase tickets at a premium from other sources, you are at risk of that ticket (being) rejected at the gate," he said.
Sutherland accused eBay of doing little to help Cricket Australia while scalpers made a profit from sales.
"I can understand they're putting an argument to create a market, but from our position what we're trying to do is protect the ordinary punter who ... wants to purchase tickets, and scalpers have jumped in ahead of them," he said.
But eBay spokesman Daniel Fieler accused Cricket Australia of a failure to cooperate when the website site asked for the numbers of the cancelled tickets.
"Without Cricket Australia providing us with that information, we can't even take the first step to find out number one, if those tickets were sold on eBay, and number two, if those people are eligible for any form of recourse," Fieler said on ABC Radio.
"But if they were purchased on eBay, we have robust consumer protection programs in place and they may be eligible for a payment."
Fieler said Cricket Australia "only had itself to blame" for the ticket problem.
"They dumped hundreds of thousands of tickets onto the market place in one day, they set up this cricket family group which was an absolute free for all," he said.
Cricket Australia established the Australian Cricket Family to give registered Australian fans first crack at Ashes tickets, but many members were unable to get tickets.
It was also revealed that Cricket Australia failed to have the Boxing Day Test included on a list of major sporting events under which it is illegal by law to scalp tickets.
In Victoria, the AFL grand final, Commonwealth Games tickets and seats at next year's world swimming championships all fall under the Victorian Government's declared events.
The AFL, which has endured previous scalping battles, re-sells grand final tickets which have been scalped provided they are identified in time.
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