IND vs ENG Test series breaks viewership records

The result stands testament to the ever-increasing popularity of the longest format, which also gained impetus with the introduction of the World Test Championship.

Mumbai (Maharashtra): India sealed the England Test series 3-1 and secured their place in the final of the World Test Championship, but this was not the only highlight of the series. The series witnessed the highest Test match viewership in the last five years. Throughout the series over a staggering viewership of 1.3 million average minute audiences glued to their TV screen.

The result stands testament to the ever-increasing popularity of the longest format, which also gained impetus with the introduction of the World Test Championship. The Test series recorded a phenomenal cumulative reach of 103 million viewers.

Speaking on the viewership numbers, Sanjog Gupta, Head of broadcaster of the game, said, "We are delighted with the response to the Test series. Resumption of international cricket in India after almost a year, high stakes to the series with a spot in the World Test Championship final on the line and quality opposition, provided the ideal context for the series.

"This was bolstered by Star's high decibel marketing campaign (India Taiyar Hai) and regional customisation in 4 Indian languages, set the stage for record viewership. Keeping the momentum going, we will continue to offer viewers an action-packed summer of cricket with the upcoming India-England ODIs, followed by IPL 2021 and the World Test Championship final," he added.

Every game in the series mattered for securing the qualification in the WTC final, and with stellar performances from Axar Patel, R. Ashwin, Rohit Sharma and Rishabh Pant, the series had the right context for ardent cricket fans to tune-in. Following a crushing 3-1 series win, Team India has set up a blockbuster clash with New Zealand in the final in June 2021.

Meanwhile, it is time for limited-overs cricket to take centre-stage with the on-going T20Is and the upcoming ODIs -- commencing from March 23.

ANI