Sony Sports Network secures exclusive rights for India's tour of Sri Lanka

Team India is set to travel down south to face Sri Lanka for a limited-over series. The two sides will face each other across three T20Is in Pallekele, followed by three ODIs in Colombo. The series, starting Saturday, July 27, 2024, will be broadcast LIVE on Sony Sports Network from 7:00 PM IST onwards.

World Champions India picked up where they left off in the recently concluded T20 World Cup to defeat Zimbabwe 4-1 in a T20I series. A new-look India travelled to Harare to prove their caliber as the country ushers in a new era of cricket, following the retirement of legendary players Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and Ravindra Jadeja from T20I cricket. Rohit Sharma & Virat Kohli, however, will feature in the ODIs against the Lankans.

On the other hand, Sri Lanka will be looking to bank on their young talent to deliver on their home turf as they aim to restore the glory days of the past. Focus will be on key players including Matheesha Pathirana along with Pathum Nissanka and Wanindu Hasaranga who feature in the top 10 men’s ODI Batting and T20I all-rounder ICC rankings. Interestingly, the two sides will also have new head coaches at the helm when they face each other with Gautam Gambhir leading India for the first time and Sanath Jayasuriya taking the charge for Sri Lanka.

As cricket gains pace on Sony Sports Network, with the broadcast of India Tour of Zimbabwe, Major League Cricket (MLC), West Indies Tour of England & Vitality T20 Blast, their flagship studio show Extra Innings returns with an exciting roster of English commentators including Robin Uthappa, Scott Styris, Saba Karim and Abhinav Mukund supported by Sri Lankan commentators Roshan Abeysinghe and Russell Arnold.

The Hindi roster comprises Ashish Nehra, Ajay Jadeja, Pragyan Ojha, Vivek Razdan and Aakash Chopra while the Tamil & Telugu panel will have Vidyut Sivaramakrishnan, R. Sridhar, Anirudha Srikkantha, TR Arasu, Venkatapathy Raju, Ashish Reddy and Akshath Reddy respectively.

The broadcast of Sri Lanka vs India will be in prime time for Indian fans as they can enjoy watching their favorite cricketers in action live on Sony Sports Ten 1, Sony Sports Ten 5 (English), Sony Sports Ten 3 (Hindi) & Sony Sports Ten 4 (Tamil & Telugu) channels.

Rajesh Kaul, chief revenue officer - Distribution & International Business and head - Sports Business, Sony Pictures Networks India, said, "The broadcast of India Tour of Sri Lanka solidifies Sony Sports Network’s position as a global multi-sports arena for audiences in India. These are exciting times for Indian cricket with the team’s recent T20 World Cup victory, the rise of new young players and the appointment of new head coach. India Tour of Sri Lanka comes at the perfect time for Indian fans who will be eager to watch the new-look team in action at prime time."

Ashley De Silva, CEO, Sri Lanka Cricket, added, “We are delighted to welcome India for a limited-over series for the first time since 2021. It will be exciting to see how the team performs under the new head coach. The two teams have a fair share of history between themselves, and it will be exciting to see some top-quality matches during the series, which will be broadcast on Sony Sports Network.”