The company bagged digital rights in India for 410 games over the next five years for $2.6B and today followed up with the international rights for three of the other big cricketing nations — Australia, South Africa and the UK — for around another $420 million (A$606 million).
Viacom 18 is a joint venture of TV18 and Paramount Global based in Mumbai.
Wonder if that means IPL on Paramount+ here, or that they’d just onsell it?
So I assume it would mean the IPL for Australia is on Paramount+?
It is possible that IPL will be on P+. Remember the BCCI is yet to sell the TV broadcast rights for Australia. Foxtel had the rights for the IPL for the past 3 years, so it will be keen to retain both TV and digital rights so Kayo subscribers can continue to stream the matches. That means an on-sell deal with Viacom 18.
Certainly an evenly matched affair going on between the Netherlands and England. The Netherlands have only been set a modest 499 to chase…
Wow yes, 498 is a record ODI score.
Shame they couldn’t crack the 500.
When I saw the number 498 I could not believe it, so I dashed to ESPN Cricinfo website to see the scoreboard. England thrashed Netherlands by 232 runs, with three batsmen scoring centuries (Salt, Malan and Buttler).
Australia claimed the 5th and final ODI against Sri Lanka by six wickets in Colombo overnight, but not after a huge scare. The tourists had reduced Sri Lanka to 8/85 in the 25th over, then Chamika Karunaratne (75 from 75 balls) led a fightback lifting his team to 160 all out. Australia lost four early wickets before Marnus Labuschagne, Alex Carey and Cameron Green steadied the ship and helped their team reaching the 161 target with 10.3 overs to spare.
If P+ gets the IPL rights in Australia this would mean a launchpad for 10 to seize the entire cricket Australia rights from 7/Fox.
Hopefully
They will obviously want the BBL back after losing it to 7/Fox from 2018/19. Cricket on 10 will be a huge drawcard especially Tests for their summer ratings.
I would love to see 10 become a more formidable competitor to 7 and 9 again, rather than just being a cost effective 3rd commercial network.
Getting cricket or sole network AFL/NRL rights could be a springboard to that. But not hopeful.
Fox Cricket and Kayo Sports will again broadcast the Sheffield Shield final live from March 23-27, along with 13 Marsh Cup games including the final.
England won the fifth and final test against India at Edgbaston today, reaching the target of 378 with seven wickets to spare, the highest successful run-chase in England’s history, thanks to an unbroken fourth wicket stand of 269 between Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow.
The series finished at 2-2 (first test was drawn), denying India their first series win in England since 2007.
They are basically employing (modified) T20 tactics to test cricket and it’s coming off. The pundits have dubbed it ‘Baz-ball’ after coach Brendon McCullum, himself a T20 specialist.
It will be interesting to see if the approach holds up when:
(a) England have to bat first and/or,
(b) They play away from home.
The whole thing is a bit like the British press proclaiming that London is hotter than the Australian outback . But that’s only for a limited time, and in certain conditions.
Congrats to Sri Lanka beating Australia by an innings and 39 runs. Jayasuriya getting 12 wickets for the match, what a machine! Thanks to SEN for bringing it to the radio. Now I wish there was a 3rd test.
Huge turnaround for Sri Lanka after losing the first test. Chandimal scored 206 in the first innings and earned the player of the series award.
Australia lost the match mainly because of poor bowling in the first innings and also wasting their reviews. It’s the first time Australia have lost by an innings after scoring 350-plus in the first innings of a test.
There is a definite trend in test matches where the team batting first concedes a lead on the 1st innings; they then tend to collapse in the 3rd innings under the weight of expectation. I was therefore not surprised at the result, particularly given Australia’s continued ineptitude against spin on the subcontinent. We did do OK in Pakistan but the pitches there were as flat as the tropo conditions in a westerly.
No doubt we will easily win our tests at home, followed by another rout in India next autumn.