File photo of the ICC Trophy (Source: X)
Revsportz Exclusive
India-Pakistan World T20 Clash in New York could be day game to suit sub-continent TV times
Debasis Sen
In what could be a major push to cricket in the US, sources confirm that India are likely to play all or most of their matches in the forthcoming World T20 in the US.
India vs Pakistan, always the marquee clash, is to be played in New York on June 8 (Saturday) or 9 (Sunday), 2024. While the plan was to have it on June 9, the time difference between the US and the sub-continent could push for a last-minute rethink.
Sources in the know confirm that if the match still happens on June 9, it could be a day game in the US, which will mean peak viewership in the sub-continent in the evening.
However, if it’s a night game in the US, it will be early morning on the Monday in India and viewership could be impacted. So the India-Pakistan match will either be on June 8 or 9 during the day.
Also, it is being said that all India games will be in the US, with a clear plan to push the game ahead of the 2028 Olympics.
The inclusion of cricket as part of the LA28 programme has meant that the ICC has started to make detailed plans as to how the game can be further pushed in the USA. Holding all India games is a part of this plan.
The West Indies, it should be noted, are co-hosts of the competition. The other team in the group apart from India and Pakistan is most likely to be Ireland and the final fixtures are expected anytime later this week or early next week.
After the blockbuster India-Pakistan clash at the MCG in October 2022, which had witnessed Virat Kohli playing one of the greatest knocks in T-20 history, the match in New York is expected to attract huge global attention. Sunday evening TV viewership in the sub-continent is expected to break new records.
RevSportz Comment
There is a long history of sports having to change their accepted timings to accommodate the demands of live television, especially when events are held in the Americas. As long ago as 1970, the marquee clash of the football World Cup in Mexico – between England, defending champions, and Brazil, the eventual winners – kicked off at noon at the Estadio Jalisco in Guadalajara. A fortnight later, the final between Brazil and Italy in Mexico City also had a noon kick-off. In both cases, the scheduling, which led to multiple complaints from players and coaches, was done with a prime-time European TV audience in mind.
Nearly a quarter-century later, when the USA hosted the World Cup in 1994, as many as 16 of the 36 group-stage matches and 11 of 16 of the knockout games kicked off before 2pm, in intense mid-day heat. Temperatures soared past 40C at some venues, and again, the TV audience in Europe and Asia was considered more important than the health of safety of the players.
Another football World Cup is set to be staged in the US, Mexico and Canada in 2026. In the wake of the tragic on-field deaths of Marc-Vivien Foe and others this century, it will be fascinating to see if player-welfare groups allow kick-offs at times when conditions are likely to be hazardous to player health.