BBC Radio to relay live commentary of IPL
dubai — The BBC has signed a two year deal with Channel 2 Group Corporation (Dubai) to broadcast the Indian Premier League.
BBC Radio 5 Live Sports Extra and the BBC Sport website will broadcast ball-by-ball commentary of the IPL, with coverage also on BBC Radio 5 Live and the BBC Asian Network.
The 12th edition of the Vivo Indian Premier League 2019 which runs until May 12, features England stars such as Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler, Jonny Bairstow and Moeen Ali alongside some of the best T20 players in the world like Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers, Chris Gayle and David Warner.
The BBC’s team commentating on the IPL 2019 includes Nikesh Rughani, Simon Mann, Isabelle Westbury, Charles Dagnall and Vithushan Ehantharajah with expert analysis by former IPL players Tymal Mills, Abhishek Jhunjhunwala and Dirk Nannes, plus England stars like Lydia Greenway, Steven Finn and Mark Ramprakash.
As well as match commentary, podcast The Doosra will round up the Vivo Indian Premier League 2019 action each week with World Cup winning England Women’s player Isa Guha, stand-up comedian Aatif Nawaz and BBC Asian Network host Ankur Desai.
Ajay Sethi, Chairman — Channel 2 Group Corporation, Vivo Indian Premier League 2019 global audio rights partner, said: “This deal will see the BBC deliver radio commentary of the IPL for the first time, providing extensive coverage of the world’s leading T20 competition in the run up to the ECB’s launch of The Hundred in 2020. This new deal extends the BBC’s long and productive partnership with Channel 2 and we look forward to further successes.”
Channel 2 will once again make Live cricket commentary available to listeners in the UAE. The Live broadcast will take place on 89.1 Radio 4 FM in Hindi and English; with regular updates on Gold 101.3 FM in Malayalam.
Additionally, Channel 2 is also exclusive broadcast partner with the ICC and holds exclusive global audio rights for all their live events up until 2023 along with other Broadcast partners such as Asia Cup etc.