The cricket fans will see the Australian and England stars fighting it out in the much-awaited Ashes on Sony, as they have acquired the rights to broadcast all Australian men’s and women’s international matches played in Australia into India and the subcontinent on a six-year deal. Cricket Australia (CA) announced on Tuesday (October 10).
With the broadcasting rights now in its bag, Sony has acquired the exclusive rights to broadcast the upcoming Ashes, the 2021-22 Ashes as well as several other bilateral series.
Expressing his delight over bagging the deal, Cricket Australia Chief Executive Officer James Sutherland said:
“We are delighted to conclude this agreement with Sony. They understand the global value of Australian cricket.
Sony, who have replaced STAR India as the right-holders of Australian cricket, has also acquired the rights of women’s Ashes and the Big Bash League.
“We’re also delighted with their support of our national women’s team, and the men’s and women’s Big Bash. Our summer of Big Bash will continue to expand and highlight the excitement and quality of our game,” Sutherland said.
“One of Australian cricket’s key strategies is to ensure it has a sustainable approach to investment so that we can keep growing the game, and the six-year deal with Sony is part of that strategy,” he added.
Ben Amarfio, CA’s Executive General Manager of Broadcasting, hoped that the latest deal would help the fans to thoroughly enjoy Australian cricket and the series against India in particular.
“We hope that cricket fans throughout this region will thoroughly enjoy seeing Australian cricket, particularly what has become one of the fiercest rivalries in world cricket – Australia v India,” Amarfio said.
“We will have numerous tours by India over the next few years, along with Australia playing against other subcontinental cricket teams,” he added.
Meanwhile, the latest deal will be a big boost for Sony who lost out on the lucrative rights to broadcasting IPL matches. Last month, STAR India shelled out a whooping bidding amount of Rs 16,347.5 crore to get the IPL media rights over the next five years till 2022.