BCCI secretary elated over IPL 2021 viewership growth

BOARD of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary Jay Shah on Thursday (30) expressed happiness over the fact that the 2021 edition of the Indian Premier League continues to entertain fans across the world.

Shah, who is the son of Indian home minister and top Bharatiya Janata Party leader Amit Shah, revealed that the 14th edition of the cash-rich T2o tournament has garnered 380 million TV viewers till match number 35 which was played on September 24 between Royal Challenges Bangalore and Chennai Super Kings.

“I am delighted to share that #IPL2021 continues to register significant growth in viewership. 380 million TV viewers (till match 35) 12 million more than 2020 at the same stage. Thank you, everyone. It will only get more exciting from here on @IPL @StarSportsIndia @BCCI,” Shah tweeted.

The 2021 edition of the tournament resumed on September 19 after a gap of more than four months after it was suspended in early May following the outbreak of a devastating second wave of the coronavirus in the country. The tournament also shifted from India to the United Arab Emirates where the final will be played on October 15.

The TV viewer aggregation of the IPL is in fact more than the last three editions of the tournament. The second phase of IPL 2021 started briskly with the viewer engagement levels being at a healthy average of 32 per cent on a per-match basis, at par with IPL 2020.

The consumption for IPL 2021 including Star Sports’ pre-match programming stands at 242 million minutes.

The figures are set to go higher as the tournament is nearing its business end. Barring Chennai and Delhi Capitals who have secured places in the playoffs, all the remaining six teams are in the race for the remaining two spots.