BT Sport will be the only place to watch all West Indies and New Zealand home international cricket after announcing two separate multi-year agreements.
The pay-TV broadcaster will show all men’s and women’s domestic and international action played in the two regions, including multiple England tours, starting in February and March with the women’s white-ball series in New Zealand.
In early 2022, BT Sport will broadcast exclusive live coverage of England men’s tour of the West Indies, which will see Joe Root’s Test side looking for revenge following a 2-1 series defeat in 2019.
England’s visits to the Caribbean are an iconic fixture in the international cricket calendar and regularly attract one of the largest live TV cricket audiences in the UK.
The series will also have added interest as it will be the first time that the two teams play the Richards-Botham Trophy Test Series – named in honour of Sir Vivian Richards and Sir Ian Botham – two of the greatest cricketers of all time.
BT Sport’s five-year rights deal with Cricket West Indies (CWI) includes all men’s and women’s domestic and international cricket in the Caribbean, which sees the world’s most exciting players on show in prime-time slots.
As well as England’s visit in 2022, BT Sport will broadcast a packed schedule of international cricket from the West Indies this year.
First up will be Sri Lanka, who they face across all formats in February and March. The West Indies then welcome South Africa, Australia and Pakistan to the Caribbean over the course of June, July and August.
Also as part of the CWI rights deal, BT Sport will also broadcast live coverage of the West Indies Super 50 competition, but the deal excludes the rights to the Caribbean Premier League T20 competition, currently held by Sky Sports, which are sold separately.
With start times in the late afternoons and early evenings, cricket lovers across the country will be able to watch the world’s top players and teams in action without having to set their alarms or stay up through the night.
Irish cricket fans will also be able to see their team in action on BT Sport in 2022, as they visit the West Indies for three One-Day Internationals and three T20 Internationals.
The young Irish team are making great strides and recorded a stunning victory over the top-ranked One Day International side, England, in 2020. With the 2023 World Cup on the horizon, Graham Ford’s men will be champing at the bit to prove they can compete with the top sides in the world.
In terms of its deal with NZ Cricket, which is believed to be a short-term deal, BT Sport has already begun broadcasting live New Zealand cricket coverage this winter, including the recent Test series victory over Pakistan that sealed the Black Caps’ place at the top of the ICC Test rankings, and the men’s and women’s Super Smash T20 competitions.
As well as the forthcoming England women’s ODI and T20 matches in New Zealand, BT Sport will also cover the New Zealand men’s series against Australia in February and March and Bangladesh men’s visit, also in March.
Commenting on both deals, Rachel Knight, Rights Director at BT Sport said:
“We want to provide customers with the best sport from across the globe, so we are delighted to add the England men’s and women’s cricket teams to our line-up.
“In addition to some hugely important and enticing Test and T20 International matches over the next 18 months, the new rights in New Zealand and West Indies will see the world’s top cricketers regularly on BT Sport.”
CWI President Ricky Skerritt added:
“On behalf of CWI, and all who helped make this deal come together, I am delighted to announce one of our largest ever broadcast rights agreements in the form of this unprecedented partnership with BT Sport.
“Our tour to England last year helped to remind us how strong the West Indies brand continues to be in the UK, and we thank BT Sport for so highly valuing West Indies cricket by committing their broadcast support over the next five years.
“I am especially pleased that, in partnership with ESPN, BT Sport will also show much of the upcoming CG Insurance Super50 Cup which starts next Sunday, 7th February.”
BT Sport’s latest cricket deals with New Zealand and West Indies mean that in just over 12 months, subscribers will have been able to watch all the heavyweights of world cricket live on the network.
The broadcaster takes over both sets of live rights from Sky Sports, which had previously been the long-term rights holders of West Indies and New Zealand cricket in the UK.
Sky Sports began its association with the England team through its coverage of West Indies cricket in 1990, when it provided the first ball-by-ball coverage of an overseas Test series, and has broadcast every England tour of the Caribbean since.
This latest move by BT, as well as the recent deal by Channel 4 to show England’s Test tour of India, further reduces Sky’s live coverage of England away cricket tours after many years of exclusivity.
Sky Sports now holds only the live rights to Pakistan and South Africa cricket coverage, but is thought to be in the running for the next Australian cricket TV rights deal, along with current holders BT Sport, as well as streaming service Prime Video, which will include the 2021/22 Ashes series.
For a full list of all forthcoming major cricket matches on the box, visit SOTB’s dedicated cricket on TV listings page.
