Indian television station, Star India has acquired the media rights of Cricket South Africa (CSA) till the end of the 2023/24 cricket season, across Asia, Middle East and North Africa.

The agreement grants Star India exclusive rights across linear and digital mediums including all India tours to South Africa in this period. The association will commence with England's tour to South Africa starting on the 27 November.

The agreement will cover all international cricket matches played by the South African men's cricket team. As per the Future Tours Plan, South Africa will be playing 59 matches at home including series against India, England and Australia.

With the Indian cricket team scheduled to tour South Africa thrice in this period, the deal includes20 South Africa vs India bilateral matches across formats, with the first of these tours commencing in 2021/22. The agreement will also cover women's international cricket matches played by the Proteas as well as CSA's domestic men's franchise matches.

"We are delighted to collaborate with Cricket South Africa. This alliance fortifies our commitment to cricket and our belief in the significance of sport in Star India's consumer proposition. South Africa has some of the most highly skilled cricketers and competitive teams, which pride themselves in taking on the best from around the world. We look forward to hosting the best of South African cricket till 2024," said Star India's CEO of Sports, Sanjog Gupta, CEO.

CSA Acting Chief Executive Officer, Kugandrie Govender said, "There are few social events on the South African sporting calendar that rally our fans up as much as the cricket-showdown between South Africa, India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, so we wholeheartedly welcome this agreement with Star India. Knowing that the sport reaches millions of people all over the world, which is now further amplified by this Star deal, will see our Protea teams even more powered up to impress fans and to outperform their rivals! We look forward to partnering with Star India and to delivering wicket-smashing cricket until the end of the 2023/24 season!"

- Cricket South Africa

Source: News24