Star Sports Network to broadcast ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2023

The eighth edition of the World Cup starts today when hosts South Africa take on Sri Lanka at Newlands Cricket Ground in Cape Town, the first of 23 matches to be played over 15 days, as 10 teams battle it out to be crowned champions on 26 February.

The event is forecast to be broadcast a minimum of 179 distinct territories and to a potential audience of over 900m, 12% higher than the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2020, due in part to a boost of coverage in the Americas.

ICC’s Global Broadcast Partner, Star Sports, will broadcast each and every match live in India across the Star network and Hotstar, with regional language coverage of all India matches in Hindi, Tamil, Telugu and Kannada. Star Sports have syndicated rights across all major cricket markets and beyond, with live broadcast in the host country and sub-Saharan Africa on Supersport and all South Africa matches, plus the knockouts, will available free-to-air on SABC. Broadcast licensee in the MENA region, E-Vision, have launched the a dedicated women’s cricket channel, Criclife W, and streaming coverage will be provided by Starzplay.

Global broadcast licensees include Sky Sports (UK and Ireland), Fox Sports (Australia), USA (Willow TV and ESPN+), Star Sports (Sri Lanka, Maldives, Nepal and Bhutan), Pakistan (PTV Sports and A-Sports), Sky Sport (New Zealand), ESPN (Caribbean Islands), GaziTV and TSports (Bangladesh), Willow TV and Hotstar (Canada), ESPN+ (Central & South America and Mexico), Astro Cricket (Hong Kong and Malaysia), TVWAN and Digicel (Pacific Islands), Starhub (Singapore) and YuppTV (Afghanistan, Continental Europe and South East Asia).

In-play digital content rights have been licensed to Meta for distribution across the ICC’s Facebook and Instagram channels in the Asian Subcontinent, with short-form highlights available globally. The BBC (UK and Ireland) and Spark Sport (New Zealand) will also be providing access to in-play clips and digital highlights across their channels.

ICC TV will produce the coverage for all matches for broadcast partners around the world. The Decision Review System (DRS) will also be available at all matches.

There is a star-studded commentary panel that will provide expert opinion across the World Cup. India legend Mithali Raj will make her ICC TV commentary debut, and will work alongside other iconic names of the game including Mignon Du Preez and Sana Mir.

Dane Van Niekerk will also make her maiden World Cup commentary appearance, and she will be joined by fellow South African broadcasters Natalie Germanos and Kass Naidoo. Former India coach WV Raman, ICC Hall of Famer Debbie Hockley, Katey Martin, along with previous winners of the Women’s T20 World Cup Lisa Sthalekar and Stacy-Ann King will also form part of the panel.

Former players and seasoned commentators Mel Jones, Anjum Chopra and Ebony Rainford-Brent will provide unique insight into the game, whilst the line-up is completed by accomplished broadcasters in the form of Ian Bishop, Nasser Hussain, Mpumelelo Mbangwa and Alan Wilkins.

Ebony Rainford-Brent said: “The final of the last Women’s T20 World Cup saw 86,174 spectators watch Australia play India! That puts both the women’s game and the T20 World Cup in perspective.

“Fans the world over have been following women’s cricket like never before and there is nothing bigger than a World Cup. I look forward to my time in the commentary box with great delight.”

Mignon du Preez said:

“I’m thrilled to be part of the commentary panel for the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup. I hope to put my experience of playing in World Cups to good use as we take the action to fans the world over.

“This tournament is very special to me as it is being held at home in South Africa. I can’t wait to welcome everyone to these spectacular venues and see some great cricket.”

Nasser Hussain said:

“It’s great to be back on commentary on an ICC women’s global event. Last year’s 50-over World Cup in New Zealand and the last edition of the T20 World Cup in Australia three years ago were very competitive events I enjoyed working on, and I have lots of expectations from this tournament as well.

“We have a very fine broadcast team and I look forward to my time in the commentary box.”

Katey Martin said:

“I expect a very competitive ICC Women’s T20 World Cup. I played in last year’s 50-over World Cup at home in New Zealand and know what it takes to win matches at this level these days.”

“We’re bound to witness some splendid matches and spirited performances over the next month.”

Mithali Raj said:

“I am really looking forward to my time in the commentary box for the T20 World Cup. There is a lot of anticipation for this tournament in India and I am sure in other parts of the world too.

“There are some very fine sides here, and it is going to be all about who does well on a particular day. I wish the teams all the very best and hope they enjoy being part of this tournament.”

Ian Bishop said:

“It’s been wonderful to witness women’s cricket grow at a rapid pace in recent years, and I expect another great tournament with the world’s best on view.

“I have always enjoyed being part of commentary panels at ICC women’s events and look forward to my time in South Africa.”

ICC TV’s all-inclusive production will allow broadcasters to transmit the matches without the need for a unilateral presentation set-up. In addition to live match coverage, a 30-minute pre-game build-up, an innings interval show and a post-game wrap-up will also be produced.

ICC TV is supported by production services partner Sunset+Vine and equipment services partner NEP Broadcast Solutions. AE Live will deliver the on-air graphics for the coverage.

The coverage will include a minimum of 24 cameras at every game and will be complemented by a variety of analytical and visual enhancements, including player tracking and the immersive Field 360°, provided by Quidich Innovation Labs.

DRS services including ball tracking and edge detection will be provided by Hawk-Eye, and the graphics system will be supplemented by in-depth cricket data analytics provided by Cricviz. Spidercam will be deployed at the semi-finals and the final.

ICC TV will also produce a host of additional content off the field of play like daily player profiles, team features, match previews, venue features and other behind-the-scenes content, getting fans closer to the action.

ICC digital will also ensure fans can follow all the action from the tournament via t20worldcup.com and the Official T20 World Cup tournament app, which features an AR shot-tracker and AI-powered highlights.

Fans will be able to access highlights, live scores & schedules as well as the standings, while at-match digital content teams will ensure those following @ICC and @T20worldcup Facebook and Instagram channels will enjoy behind-the-scenes content and player exclusives from the event.

The official hashtag for the event is #t20worldcup for those wanting to join the fan community.
BCS Bureau