According to Barbados Cricket Association president, Tony Marshall, there will be over 15,000 fans for the first four days, there is not a ticket available, and apart from locals, a few thousand tourists who are in Bridgetown for the match will have to stay in their hotel rooms and watch the game on television.
According to a ruling by the government of Barbados, only 35 per cent of the seats for a Test match at Kensington Oval can be sold to tour group operators, and some 5,000 tickets have been sold to English fans.
This will be the first time that a Test match at Kensington will be shown live on local television.
``We had to do it,'' said Marshall. ``The Oval will be packed, so why not?''
Barbados is a tourist destination, cricket is part of the attraction, and the fee for the live television broadcast was paid by the government through the tourist board.
Apart from the newly-constructed Michie Hewitt Stand at the northern-eastern of the ground, temporary stands have been erected in every available space around the ground - including the gaps between the stands.