Cricket’s free-to-air future remains clouded as Nine circles dual World Cups
Channel Nine has been savaged for its Women’s World Cup decision with Australian star Alyssa Healy labelling it a ‘slap in the face’. Will it affect the next TV rights deal?
Cricket
Don't miss out on the headlines from Cricket. Followed categories will be added to My News.
The severe backlash Channel Nine has received for snubbing cricket’s Women’s World Cup could rumble all the way to the next television rights deal.
Nine has been slammed for relinquishing its rights to the Women’s ODI World Cup in New Zealand later this summer.
It will instead be streamed exclusively on Foxtel and Kayo Freebies, which means viewers can watch the action without a subscription.
The decision caused an instant and prolonged social media backlash which has underscored the growing popularity of women’s cricket.
With Fox Sports and Channel 7 in year four of a six year deal, the shape of the next deal is already being looked at.
Media rights expert Colin Smith told Code Sports this month he felt the time was right for women’s cricket rights to be sold separately from the men and have their own place, a sentiment likely to be reinforced by the latest drama.
Watch every game of the KFC Big Bash League Live & On-Demand on Kayo or catch up for FREE with minis on Kayo Freebies. Join Kayo Now >
Experienced Australian keeper Alyssa Healy spoke out against the Nine snub in Adelaide on Sunday.
“I think it’s a little bit of a slap in the face to say that we’re not commercially viable,’’ Healy said.
“That someone doesn’t want to stick their hand up and say, you know what, we’re going to put this on the telly so that everyone can watch it.
“So it’s a little bit hard to take in that regard.”
The fate of the next free-to-air deal remains intriguing.
Nine held the free-to-air broadcasting rights for cricket in Australia for four decades before Fox Sports and Channel Seven signed a $1.182 billion deal with Cricket Australia.
Seven has had a tempestuous relationship with cricket and launched court action against Cricket Australia in 2020, threatening to terminate its contract.
It has been widely speculated Channel 7 would not seek another deal with CA and it has twice attempted to on-sell the rights to the Big Bash to Channel 10.
Nine has focused its summer attention on tennis and is currently broadcasting the Australian Open.
Is Nine going in to bat again for cricket rights?
The plot is thickening with the future of free-to-air cricket broadcasting in Australia with Channel 9 to show selected games in the next two men’s World Cups.
Fox Cricket will show all matches for this year’s T20 World Cup in Australia and next year’s ODI World Cup in India with Nine announcing it will display Australian games and finals in both tournaments in the continuation of a long-time World Cup sharing arrangement between the two networks.
Fox also has exclusive rights to the women’s ODI World Cup in New Zealand in March which will follow the record breaking Ashes ratings home summer.
The Women’s World Cup will also be streamed for free on Kayo Freebies.
Men’s T20 world champions Australia will start their T20 defence on October 22 at the SCG with a rematch of last year’s final against New Zealand.
Nine held the free-to-air broadcasting rights for cricket in Australia for four decades before Fox Sports and Channel 7 signed a $1.182 billion deal with Cricket Australia in 2018.
That deal is just about to complete its fourth year of a six-year duration and negotiations for the next broadcast rights package will soon take a sharper focus with CA certain to try and spice up the Big Bash before the rights are sold again.
Seven has had a tempestuous relationship with cricket and launched court action against Cricket Australia in 2020, threatening to terminate its contract.
It has been widely speculated Channel 7 would not seek another deal with CA and it has twice attempted to on-sell the rights to the Big Bash to Channel 10.
Nine has focused its summer attention on tennis and is currently broadcasting the Australian Open.
Former Nine boss Hugh Marks said during the height of the Seven-CA dispute Nine would be interesting in regaining the rights “in the right circumstances’’ with Nine sources saying a possible option would be screening Test matches only with the season to finish just before the Australian Open.
World’s biggest hitter has legend in his sights
Mitch Marsh has been dubbed the world’s most powerful hitter as Australia’s Twenty20 hero targets a place in the top order of both white-ball line-ups.
Marsh, 31, suspected his shock promotion to No. 3 last July was simply due to David Warner, Steve Smith and Glenn Maxwell skipping the winter tours of the West Indies and Bangladesh.
But captain Aaron Finch revealed the move that was validated as a masterstroke when Marsh delivered Australia’s maiden T20 World Cup title with a life-changing 77 not-out (50 balls) in November’s final was orchestrated to take down the West Indies’ fast bowling cartel.
“We knew against the West Indies they were going to come predominantly pace-heavy, particularly at the start of an innings,” Finch told News Corp.
“Mitch is one of the best players of fast bowling in the world I’d say. It was about trying to give him a little bit of extra time, because we know how damaging he can be when he gets a few balls under his belt.”
In 14 games at No. 3 last year Marsh averaged 45.8, striking at 133. He had batted above No. 6 only twice before that in his career.
With the likes of Andre Russell, Fabian Allen and Fidel Edwards to thank for the T20 rise, Marsh wants to be the man in 50-over cricket as well.
“Hopefully I can keep batting No. 3 for Australia in T20s for a long period now,” Marsh told News Corp.
“I’m certainly hopeful of an opportunity up the top in one-day cricket. We’ll see what happens.”
Standing in the way at No. 3 in the ODI line-up is Steve Smith, and Finch pointed out the world’s best Test batsman crunched twin 60-ball centuries against India at the SCG last summer.
But with 34 matches until the 2023 World Cup in India Finch said there was time to tinker and explore multiple options.
Remarkably, Marsh flicked the first ball he faced in the World Cup final for six against New Zealand’s Adam Milne as he quickly drained any tension from Australia’s run chase.
Mitchell Santner and Jimmy Neesham’s first balls to Marsh in that final also sailed over the rope, as did the first ball of Ish Sodhi’s third over as the spinner was pulled from Kane Williamson’s attack.
Glenn Maxwell said pre-tournament that the Aussies would huddle around Marsh’s net and watch in awe at how far he could whack the ball.
This reaction 😆
— KFC Big Bash League (@BBL) January 17, 2022
It can only mean one thing: Mitch Marsh is going BIG #BBL11pic.twitter.com/QwHbp37orR
“It was a fair wrap, so I was pretty happy with Maxi,” Marsh told News Corp.
“I owed him a beer for that one.”
Finch said Marsh’s “ultra-aggressive” starts were crucial to Australia’s game plan in Dubai.
“He’s as powerful as anyone in the game,” Finch said.
“There’s always a little bit of envy when Mitch bats, especially against the quicks in the nets.
“It can be a little bit daunting at times when the quicks are running in in an enclosed net environment.
“But he was outstanding. His ability to be aggressive from the start and put the pressure back on opposition batting at No. 3 is something that is so important in a T20 game.
“He was unbelievable.”
But Marsh – nicknamed “Bison” – said his brutal hitting power wasn’t born out of bursting muscles.
“I haven’t lifted an upper body weight in the gym for about eight years now. Often it’s just timing, it’s practice,” he said.
“Similar to professional golfers, they don’t necessarily swing the club overly hard.
“It’s just repetition, practice – that’s what I live for. To get better and to groove my swing.
“In T20 cricket most boundaries are only 75m long and I don’t necessarily train to hit them 100m, but sometimes it’s just the way it happens.”
Originally published as Cricket’s free-to-air future remains clouded as Nine circles dual World Cups
Moral hypocrites England decide tons are anti-cricket
The new tough-talking, pot-stirring English cricket team is suffering from a baffling identity crisis on the eve of the Ashes tour, going into meltdown after two Indian batters had the audacity to tell them ‘no’.
England’s appalling display mars absolute Test classic
England’s display in the Test classic against India was appalling, and unsportsmanlike, writes Peter Jenkins. It just makes the upcoming Ashes more appealing.