India’s massive 12-match tour of New Zealand kicks off Thursday, October 22, and holy smokes, the broadcast lineups are absolutely stacked! This thing is HUGE, marking the start of India’s 2026-27 overseas season and running for a full six weeks with 12 matches on the schedule. Seriously, New Zealand Cricket is calling it the largest inbound bilateral series they’ve ever hosted. You know it’s a big deal when Hero VIDA steps up as the title sponsor, grabbing naming rights for every single game. This whole tour is also part of a program celebrating 100 years of sporting ties between India and New Zealand. Talk about a centennial celebration!
The Powerhouse Broadcast Teams Are Set
If you’re in India, you’ll be catching all the action on Sony Sports Network and streaming on SonyLIV. Over in New Zealand, Sky Sport has wrestled back the broadcast rights from TVNZ. Both networks have confirmed their commentary teams, and seriously, what a lineup! Sony Sports Network’s “Extraaa Innings” panel is ten-deep, featuring big guns like Ravi Shastri, Sunil Gavaskar, and Harsha Bhogle leading the charge. They’re joined by legends like Ajinkya Rahane, Ravichandran Ashwin, Shardul Thakur, Ajay Jadeja, Venkatesh Prasad, Ian Smith, and Simon Doull. For the Sky Sport feed in English, you’ll hear familiar voices such as Ian Smith, Simon Doull, Katey Martin, and Scott Styris. During the T20Is and ODIs, Ravi Shastri, Stephen Fleming (T20Is only), Ross Taylor, Tim Southee, and Shane Bond jump in. For the Tests, Sunil Gavaskar and Harsha Bhogle join the crew. Laura McGoldrick is presenting for Sky Sports, too.
Hindi Commentary For The First Time Ever Is a Game-Changer
Here’s the real kicker, the absolute game-changer for this tour: Sky Sport is offering Hindi commentary for the *entire* tour for the first time ever! Can you believe it? They pulled this off in partnership with Sony Pictures Networks India, and it’s a massive win for fans. Ravi Shastri is gonna be leading the commentary for the white-ball matches, while Sunil Gavaskar takes the reins for the Tests. Getting that dedicated Hindi feed across the whole series is a monumental step for cricket broadcasting in the region.
The action starts with five T20Is from October 22 to November 1. Then it’s five ODIs from November 4 to 15. The tour wraps up with two Tests: one in Wellington from November 19, and the final one in Christchurch from November 27 to December 1. The first T20I is set for Hagley Oval in Christchurch, kicking off at 8 p.m. local time on Thursday, October 22. Get ready, because with this kind of broadcast talent and first-time Hindi commentary, this series is going to be unmissable!
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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