Gold Coast company Sportcor to produce ball for UAE T20 League

A Gold Coast tech start-up has company has secured a deal to provide a revolutionary piece of sporting equipment to one of the world’s richest leagues. FULL DETAILS

GOLD Coast tech start-up Sportcor have secured the rights to produce the official cricket ball for the lucrative International League T20 in the UAE.

Called the ‘SmartBall’, it appears as a standard Kookaburra Turf ball, but with a movement sensor tightly cradled inside its cork core, produces a raft of in-depth data for broadcasters, including ball release speed, spin measures and strike power.

The tech was successfully trialled during the 2022 Caribbean Premier League, with the UAE deal placing the company in the box seat of the franchise cricket revolution.

Sportcor CEO Zane Hall said the data added another layer of storytelling to the game, and helped viewers understand tactics employed by bowlers to confuse batsmen.

“The ball provides a source of data that adds another layer to what’s already been collected by the scientists,” he said.

Mr Hall remained coy about the numbers behind the deal, but confirmed it was a major boon for the company to work with the second-richest league worldwide, behind the Indian Premier League.

“It’s a six figure sum for us, which when you consider that it's over a short term period, and the long term partnerships we can establish, it places us really well to have a healthy top line and translate that into scalable results for the cricket world,” he said.

Brisbane Heat player Hugo Burdon and Xavier Bartlett show off the SmartBall, which may feature in future BBL’s. Picture Glenn Hampson

Mr Hall revealed Sportcor were also in talks with the Big Bash League, Pakistan Super League and New Zealand Super Smash about use of the ball at future tournaments.

The tech has also been used by the English Cricket Board, in their pathways and development program.

Mr Hall said use of the tech in the IPL was a big goal for the company, but producing premium results in satellite leagues was the main focus.

“The IPL is incredibly important to us, but the early conversations we’ve had with the community in India has shown that the best thing for us is to show we can be successful in the provincial leagues, which would accelerate our case with the (Board of Control for Cricket in India) BCCI.

“Our clear aim for the end of this year is to have two or three provincial tournaments under our belt, and develop that momentum among the franchise owners.

“We want the stakeholders to realise it’s fantastic for the players and fans, and also crucial for adding to the broadcast data that’s so important now.”

Some of the stats that were collected by the SmartBall following a delivery. Picture: Supplied

Former Australian paceman Michael Kasprowicz co-founded the company, and has labelled the ball the most innovative piece of cricket technology he had seen in decades.

“This is the best bit of sport tech I’ve come across in 30 years in cricket as a player and administrator because it is for the player,” Kasprowicz told News Corp last year.

“Instant feedback is so important. We had the ball used in the CPL and we blew away a couple of groups who used our ball for the first time in elite competition.

“We are empowering cricketers and giving them another level of understanding that has never existed. ”