The Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 has achieved remarkable viewing figures on the JioStar network, with TV viewership increasing by 74% compared to the last edition of the series in Australia. The India-Australia rivalry, dubbed The Toughest Rivalry by the JioStar network, has reached new heights, with the 2024-25 series becoming the second most viewed Away Test Series for the Indian side on television. The series received 192.5 million TV viewers, totalling 52 billion minutes of watch-time across broadcast and digital media.
Despite the suboptimal match schedules owing to time differences, this series became the second most viewed test series on Indian television (including India’s home and away test series), with this rivalry also taking the top rank with the BGT Trophy in 2017.
The five-language live coverage of the series captivated fans and resulted in a 49% increase in television watch time over the 2020 season.
Sanjog Gupta, CEO Sports, Jio Star, said, “We are proud to have institutionalised ‘The Toughest Rivalry’ as a unique descriptor of India-Australia matches. After the success of establishing ‘The Greatest Rivalry’ as the universally accepted nomenclature for India-Pakistan clashes, this was the next step in ‘eventification’ of another key rivalry. The coverage of BGT 2024-25 also demonstrated our commitment to delivering a world class on-screen sporting experiences to millions of fans.
“From a brand-new design package to the advent of new cameras, we strived to provide a deeply immersive experience to sports fans. We are proud that our Hindi coverage garnered appreciation from the Indian diaspora across the world and are grateful to Cricket Australia for their trust and collaboration, which has been instrumental in bringing ‘The Toughest Rivalry’ alive in such a spectacular manner.”
Nick Hockley, CEO, Cricket Australia, said, “We’re extremely grateful to our broadcast partners who provided world class coverage by producing iconic images and insightful analysis throughout the summer. That 192.5 million viewers watched the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series on Jio Star in India again demonstrates cricket’s ability to reach vast international audiences and the enduring global interest in Test cricket.”
The network’s comprehensive marketing campaign, ‘The Toughest Rivalry’, emphasised the Australian summer and high-quality broadcasts beginning in September 2024, which contributed to the increase in viewership. Star Sports Network also produced ‘Boiling Point’, a highly praised multi-episode docuseries on the famous 2008 trip that enhanced the India-Australia rivalry.
Star Sports Network also brought fans closer to the action with immersive storytelling, including expert commentary in English, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, and Kannada, as well as captivating storylines celebrating this historic rivalry throughout decades. In addition, the JioStar network introduced fan-engagement activities on Disney+, Hotstar, and ESPN Cricinfo, including a contest to choose the best performance by an Indian in Australia, which received over 1.5 million votes. The JioStar network also used the power of community and discussions to drive engaging social media activities across Star Sports’ accounts.