Ahead of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 in India and Sri Lanka, JioStar has informed the International Cricket Council (ICC) that it wants to end the three-year media rights agreement because of financial losses, as the reports of the Economic Times have claimed. It has also been reported that the Reliance Industries-controlled JioStar has told ICC about the decision.

The JioStar informed that they can’t continue for the remaining two years for a price of $3-billion contract, which ends in 2027, which has left the International Cricket Council (ICC) to look for other media partners. The report has also shed light on how the ICC has approached other platforms, including the Sony Sports Network, Netflix, and Amazon Prime.

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The report also noted that the ICC has begun a fresh process for the 2026-2029 period for approximately INR 2.4 billion. The Reliance Industries latest annual report, JioStar, the Reliance-Disney joint venture, has also given its verdict on the contracts, leaping to a staggering INR 25760 crore in FY 2024-25, more than double the INR 12319 crore set aside just a year earlier.

ICC searches for new media partner as JioStar decides to exit ahead of new cycle

The jump is rooted in the company’s admission that the revenue from the long-duration rights deals may then fall short of covering their costs. Even with the hefty financial buffer, the broadcaster clocked a skinny profit of INR 18 crore, which has made a cautious rebound from the INR 12548 crore less reported in FY 2023-24.

The advertising, subscriptions, and syndication helped the revenues climb to INR 21044 crore from INR 20097 crore, and the operating costs remained steep at INR 17826 crore. As per the reports, the JioStar has commanded an estimated 34% share in television entertainment and over 85% in sports viewership.

Star made a renegotiation of its contract for the Men’s T20 World Cup 2024, held in the United States of America and the West Indies, to promote the game in the new regions, but that grasped a very few Indian viewers due to the match timings.

India and Sri Lanka, the joint hosts for the T20 World Cup 2026 in February-March, appear to have received different draws. The top-ranked side and the defending champion are expected to find an easier group in comparison to the 2014 champions. The Island nation, which is ranked eighth in the ICC ranking, is grouped with three full-member Test nations- Australia, Zimbabwe, and Ireland, along with Oman. 

It could be a group of death, while on the other hand, India and Pakistan are the two Test-playing nations in their bracket, alongside the Netherlands, Namibia, and the United States of America, completing the five-team lineup. With two sides qualifying for the Super Eight stage, it could be a straightforward route.

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There are four groups of five teams each, and it could come to a case of many tough groups in the preliminary stage. England and the West Indies, the former champions, are drawn along with Bangladesh, a full member and formidable side in the subcontinent conditions, as they have Nepal and Italy, the 28th-ranked in the world.

India and Pakistan grouped together for ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026

The runners-up from the last edition, South Africa, are also in a tough group as they have two hard oppositions- New Zealand and Afghanistan, who would be a hard competitor in Asian conditions. They will, however, have two easy games against the United Arab Emirates and Canada for the February 07- March 08 championship.

India is going to open their campaign against the USA, followed by the league fixtures against Namibia, Pakistan, and the Netherlands. As per the previously completed mutual agreement, their clash against Pakistan will take place in a neutral venue- Colombo. The Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad will host the final unless Pakistan qualifies.

Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, and Delhi will be the four other cities to host the games in India. In Sri Lanka, Kandy will be a venue in addition to the two other grounds in Colombo. The ICC will unveil the draw in Mumbai on November 25.

India’s victory in the ICC Women’s ODI World Cup 2025 ended a long wait for the Harmanpreet Kaur-led side as they wrote a new viewership record after beating South Africa in the final at the DY Patil Sports Academy in Navi Mumbai. The final was streamed on JioHotstar and drew a record 185 million viewers and matched the viewership of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2025 final in the process. 

The official data revealed that the event, which began on September 30, reached 446 million viewers in total and overtook the combined audience of the last three Women’s World Cups. India’s maiden win of the event created a massive history in itself, as the popularity and growth increased among the fan base of the country.

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The final, which was played last Sunday, saw a peak of nearly 21 million as the Harmanpreet-led side became the first Asian side to lift the Women’s World Cup trophy. India’s win over Australia sparked nationwide celebrations, which capped off the campaign with a fair share of highs and lows.

ICC Women’s World Cup 2025 final creates new history in digital viewership

In another milestone for that, 92 million viewers watched the final on TV, as the figure has equaled the connected TV viewership of both the Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 and the Men’s ODI World Cup 2023 finals. The numbers display how digital and large-screen streaming has become central to the game.

India crowned the world champions as the focus will now shift to the upcoming 2026 season of the Women’s Premier League (WPL) next year. While they returned home, all of their players got a warm welcome and loud cheer among the fans, along with several celebratory victory parades.

The players met the Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi, and were welcomed back home with packed crowds and grand ceremonies. If the tournament is to be seen as precedent for what’s to come for the sort, then it can be said that the game would grow again.

The International Cricket Council (ICC) has shared a special video on the best spinning and pace deliveries of the recently concluded Women’s World Cup 2025 in India and Sri Lanka, where the Harmanpreet Kaur-led side lifted their maiden title of the format, having beaten South Africa in the final at the DY Patil Sports Academy in Navi Mumbai. 

In the video, the first member is Sri Lanka’s left-arm spinner, Inoka Ranaweera, whose left-arm bowler bamboozled the right-handed batter of India, Jemimah Rodrigues, who went for the spin but the ball held its line to break the middle stump of the batter. The second member of the list was New Zealand’s Melie Kerr against Australia’s left-handed batter, Phoebe Litchefield.

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Kerr’s delivery pitched outside the leg stump of the southpaw and beat the batter’s edge to hit the off-stump. The third ball of the list was Bangladesh’s Marufa Akter against Pakistan’s Omaima Sohail, as the ball jagged back with the swing to breach the defense of the batter and break the top of the off-stump.

Watch: ICC shares glimpses of best spin and pace deliveries during Women’s World Cup 2025

England’s Linsey Smith was up against South Africa’s Marizanne Kapp, who looked to defend the left-arm spinner. But the ball went through the defense of the batter with the angle and broke the stumps. The best ball perhaps came from Nonkululeko Mlaba against India’s Harleen Deol, who looked to tuck the leg-side ball for a single, but the ball spun hugely to miss the batter’s outside edge and hit the stumps.

 

 

 

 

 

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India’s first member of the list was Sneh Rana, as Protea batter Kapp used her feet to get a single. But he was yorked as the Blue Brigade got a fine breakthrough in the defense. Bangladesh’s Rabeya Khan also baffled the White Ferns’ Melie Kerr, who was beaten on the pace to get bowled.

Pakistan’s Nashra Sandhu also went through the defense of Annabel Sutherland from Australia. The right-handed batter couldn’t understand the pace of the ball. Masabata Klass was another pacer of the South Africa side who broke the stumps of Sri Lanka’s Hasini Perera.

The ICC Women’s World Cup 2025 ended last week when the Indian cricket team, under the leadership of Harmanpreet Kaur, beat South Africa in the final at the DY Patil Sports Academy in Navi Mumbai. The entire tournament saw the players putting their lives on the line and showing some incredible acrobatics to grab stunning catches to send the batter back to the dugout.

The ICC has shared a video where they put on some incredible catches in the event. The first one was of Vishmi Gunaratne, who dived forward on the boundary to dismiss the Indian batter on the very first game of the event in Guwahati. Laura Wolvaardt, against New Zealand, took a stunner with one hand to dismiss the batter.

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Wolvaardt was excellent in keeping her shape and balance during the catch, besides making sure that the ball wouldn’t pop out of his hands. New Zealand’s Eden Carson, against Pakistan, dived into her right side to grab the cut shot of the batter.

Watch: ICC shares video of best catches from Women’s World Cup 2025 

The first Indian player to get selected in the video was their fast bowler, Kranti Gaud, who was bowling against the Proteas, whose batter couldn’t time the delivery, which perhaps stuck on the surface. Gaud, on his follow-on, kept her eyes on the ball and stretched her hands to keep the ball. Even though she fell on the floor, that wasn’t enough to get the ball out of her hand.

 

 

 

 

 

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Apart from that, the semifinal saw Jemimah Rodrigues grabbing a great catch off the bowling of Deepti Sharma against Australia to dismiss Beth Mooney, who used her feet to nail the ball into the extra cover. He perhaps looked to go over the fielder, where Rodrigues jumped to grab a one-handed blinder.

New Zealand’s Suzie Bates was another fielder who went back on her stance against Pakistan to take a catch. It was certainly tough to grab, but the veteran made it look so tough. Most of the video consisted of New Zealand fielders. The best moment and catch for the Indian fans would be of Amanjot Kaur, who took the most important catch to dismiss Wolvaardt in the final.

The International Cricket Council (ICC) chairman, Jay Shah, is in Navi Mumbai and attended the second semifinal between India and Australia during the Women’s World Cup 2025 final at the DY Patil Sports Academy. The Blue Brigade completed a record run chase to earn victory and qualify for the final against South Africa on November 02 at the same venue.

Shah met the officials of the Cricket Association for the Blind in India (CABI) on Saturday, November 01, where the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary, Devajit Saikia, was also present in the meeting. CABI is organizing the program for the inaugural Women’s T20 World Cup- for the Blind 2025, which is set to begin on November 11 and end 12 days later.

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“Jay Shah was very positive about our cricket, and he and Saikia have promised to provide their full support. Shah told us that he will come for the trophy unveiling in Delhi, which will take place on November 9 or 10, and also try to attend the final, which will be held in Colombo on November 23.” Dr. Mahantesh G. Kivadasannavar, chairman of the CABI, expressed the Times of India (TOI).

Jay Shah to be present in Women’s T20 World Cup 2025 final for blind and unveil trophy 

The tournament, co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka, will be played across New Delhi, Bengaluru, and Colombo from November 11 to 23, 2025. It will have six teams featuring Australia, India, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and the United States of America. The competition will start with the inauguration and four matches in New Delhi till November 13.

The action will later move to Bengaluru for the next four games from November 14 to 16, and will conclude with seven league fixtures, two semifinals, and the final, along with the closing ceremony in Colombo on November 23. On October 29 in Delhi, the CABI unveiled the official jersey of the Indian side for the World Cup.

Shah also met the IOC president to continue their discussions on the re-entry of cricket into the Olympic program for the 2028 edition. It will be making a comeback at the Olympics after 128 years.

The International Cricket Council (ICC) has decided to suspend the United States of America Cricket (USAC) in the process of hitting the reset button as they look to overhaul the leadership and governance structure of the sport. The decision, which won’t impact their participation in the T20 World Cup 2026 in India and Sri Lanka, has been taken by the ICC board in a virtual meeting.

The actual reasons for the suspension, before the T20 World Cup, are not clear, but it has come just over two months after the ICC granted the association three months to hold the free and fair elections and carry out the governance reforms. That was the time when the ICC reiterated that the association would remain ‘on notice’ as it has been the case since July 2024.

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USA chairman, Venu Pisike, revealed that there had been ‘no communication’ from the ICC on the suspension, which doesn’t have an immediate effect on the game, which is a part of the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics Games. As the hosts, the USA are expected to be one of the six teams to contest for medals in both men’s and women’s categories.

ICC decides to suspend USA cricket

 The roadmap is comprised of six steps and was drawn by the ICC’s Normalization Committee, which is headed by the ICC chairman, Jay Shah. Before that, the committee met with the top of the association’s chairman and the CEO twice in April, virtually and in person in June. Following that, the USCA would step down from the fresh elections and would apply for the NGB status.

The ICC revealed that a comprehensive review of the USA cricket will be undertaken in close consultation. It’s, however, not clear who would oversee the operations of the game in the country at the moment.

ACE (American Cricket Enterprise) opted to legally challenge the termination. The former New Zealand all-rounder, Corey Anderson, who moved to the USA and became eligible to play in 2022, is now the operations director of the Association. He reckoned that the differences between the USAC and ACE had put the players in an uncertain state for their future.

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has responded to the mail of the International Cricket Council (ICC) regarding the video recording of the match referee, Andy Pycroft, with the Pakistan captain, Salman Ali Agha, head coach, Mike Hesson, and some other members of the side which went viral on various social media platforms ahead of the clash against the United Arab Emirates (UAE) at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium.

The ICC pulled up the PCB for ‘violation of multiple tournament rules’ as the team delayed the encounter in protest against the world body’s action in a demand for Pycroft’s suspension from the tournament and later from their participating clashes.

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PCB’s demand grew from the handshake controversy in the Asia Cup 2025 encounter against India at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, as the board blamed Pycroft for the fiasco and also warned of pulling out of the rest of the tournament. After the ICC rejected the request, the Salman Ali Agha-led side shot another letter on the eve of their game against the UAE, besides not attending the press conference in Dubai.

PCB responds to ICC’s mail on Andy Pycroft’s video from Asia Cup 2025

The Pakistan Cricket Board has now responded to the ICC, stating that the team’s presence had authorized the access to the PMOA, adding that his presence in the meeting with the referee is not a violation. The board has also asked the ICC that if the SOP wasn’t followed, then the ICC should look to question the match referee on whether he reported the matter to the ACU.

Pakistan started their campaign with an easy victory against the Oman side before facing a huge six-wicket defeat against India in Dubai. Coming into the last group-stage encounter, they lost against the UAE side to qualify for the Super 4 stage of the competition.

Pakistan will now face their arch-rivals, India, on September 21 in Dubai before making a visit to Abu Dhabi for the clash against Sri Lanka on September 23. Their last group-stage fixture will be against Bangladesh on September 25 at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, while the final will take place two days later.

India’s mystery spinner, Varun Chakravarthy, has become the new number one-ranked T20I bowler in the latest rankings of the International Cricket Council (ICC). He becomes just the third Indian bowler to top the ICC T20I bowling rankings, alongside Ravi Bishnoi and the premier pacer, Jasprit Bumrah. Varun has become a vital T20I member of the Blue Brigade in the last 12 months.

The Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) spinner picked up 17 wickets in the 2025 season of the Indian Premier League at an average of 22.52 and an economy rate of 7.66, as he has crossed the 15-wicket mark in every season from 2020/21 apart from 2022. Sri Lanka’s Nuwan Thusara has jumped six ranks to reach the sixth spot in the table after speical show in the ongoing Asia Cup 2025. 

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During the ongoing Asia Cup 2025 event, Chakravarthy picked up 1/3 during their opening clash against the United Arab Emirates before backing it up with an impressive haul of 1/24 in four overs against Pakistan at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium. New Zealand’s Jacob Duffy and the West Indies’ Akeal Hossein are in the second and third spots. 

Varun Chakravarthy becomes No. 1-ranked T20I bowler in latest ICC ranking

Pakistan’s duo Sufiyan Muqeem has risen four spots to the 11th rank, while the leg spinner, Abrar Ahmed, has gone up 11 places to the 16th spot. Their left-arm wrist spinner, Kuldeep Yadav, has risen a whopping 16 rungs to the 23rd position in the table. Abhishek Sharma has held his number one spot for T20I batting with a new career-high rating.

England’s Phil Salt is in the second spot, and Jos Buttler is at the third spot, while South Africa’s duo Dewald Brevis has gone up two places to the 11th. Aiden Markram has got the 30th rank in the table. India’s premier all-rounder, Hardik Pandya, remains at the top of the T20I all-rounders’ rankings.

Latest ICC Rankings for T20I bowlers-

After Pakistan’s tri-series victory against Afghanistan, their stars have risen in the ICC T20 rankings. Their left-arm spinner, Sufiyan Muqeem, has risen seven places to 15th overall on the back of his two wickets in the final at Sharjah, while Shaheen Afridi jumps four spots to 22nd. Abrar Ahmed has improved 39 spots to equal 28th after his six wickets in two games at the event.

The left-handed aggressive opening batter of the Green Brigade, Fakhar Zaman, has been the biggest winner as they climbed nine spots to 68th, thanks to his 155 runs in the series as Sri Lanka’s top-order batter, Kusal Perera, has gained three places to move to the ninth spot after his unbeaten fifty against Zimbabwe in Harare.

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Zimbabwe’s T20I captain and veteran all-rounder, Sikandar Raza, has gained three spots to fourth overall in the list of T20I all-rounder for his special show against Sri Lanka. He recently became the number one-ranked all-rounder in the 50-over format.

Jofra Archer closes in on the number one ODI bowlers’ spot in latest ICC rankings

The premier fast bowler of the Three Lions, Jofra Archer, collected eight wickets in the recent three-match series against South Africa that included a wonderful spell of 4/18 in the third and final game at the Rose Bowl in Southampton. He has been rewarded 16 spots in the rankings to move up 16 places to the third spot, only behind two spinners, Keshav Maharaj and Maheesh Theekshana.

Archer’s teammate, spinner Adil Rashid, has improved seven spots to eighth on the same list for ODI bowlers. The three batters of the England side, Joe Root, Jos Buttler, and Jacob Bethell, also went up in the list of ICC ODI batters’ rankings.