‘I realized cricket was the lowest-general property’: How Harish Thawani and the 90s boom revolutionized Indian cricket broadcasting. Cricket news

The founder of the Indus Club and in the east of Neo Sports Network, Harish Thawani took an attractive look in the origin of India’s Sports Broadcasting Industry in the latest episode of Bombay Sport Exchange (BSE). A pioneer in the field, Thawani shared how Indian cricket began with a bold step during the 1992 Cricket World Cup, turning into a muhamoth.“I am a failed player, which has turned into an off-field activity,” said Thawani in a clear conversation with Sriinavas Rao, the head of the material (sports), several times. “Passion’s profession Banadi (I turned my passion into a profession).” Thawani started his career in the advertisement, a background that gave him insight into media and branding – skill he would later apply to cricket broadcasting.Go beyond the border with our YouTube channel. Subscribe now!It turned in 1992. “It is rarely known that we actually supported the India Broadcasting Rights of the 1992 World Cup – where (Sachin) Tendulkar made his debut,” Thawani remembered.Nimbus Sport, led by Thawani, paid around $ 550,000 for those rights. “In 1987, the last World Cup produced only $ 64,000 in broadcasting revenue. So you can see what it was a leap.”

At a time when Indian industries were mashing real estate, cricket remained a very rarely used property, he announced.“We realized that cricket was the lowest monthly property in the country,” said Thawani. “We put it on Doordarshan and sold the advertisements ourselves. Similarly we made 300% profit.”Instead of contacting traditional four big advertisers, Thawani and their teams reached unused areas. “If you want a person to pay a dollar instead of a penny, then you get new customers. That’s what we have done, and this is the expansion of every business,” he explained.

The success of this enterprise triggered a domino effect, starting a new era for Indian sports broadcasting. In the next two decades, India saw a revolution in cricket – and eventually other sports – was consumed. The entry of satellite television, the rise of private sports networks, and the final explosion of digital media carried forward this change.Asked about the origin of the Indian Premier League (IPL) and the personalities that shaped modern Indian cricket, Thawani took a fine stand. Accepting Lalit Modi’s leading role, he emphasized that the credit for the creation of the IPL was shared.“There are many fathers of success; Failures become orphans,” they took a pinch. “There were many minds behind the IPL. The real architect was Sharad Pawar – he supported it with the board money. Lalit was not around for the last 16 years and the IPL has only increased.”He also said that a pair of American sports management professors were hired to help designing the IPL format. “Was it innocent? No. Is it improved? Yes. This is the journey,” said Thawani.

Recalling a profile of the 2000s, who called him “The Beast”, Thawani laughed it. “All fast bowlers have an animal. You have to come up with that mindset – I am going to receive you,” he said, comparing his aggressive business approach to a bowler’s mindset on the field.Reflecting over the last 25 years, Thawani credited a visionary like Jagmohan Dalmia, Bindra, and Sharad Power has the courage to challenge the status quo and make Indian cricket administration professionals. But it was a combination of strategic vision, bold financial decisions, and media lover who enabled Indian cricket to move into a global entertainment powerhouse from a minor funded pastime.Today, Indian sports broadcasting is one of the largest markets in the world – which extends television, OTT and mobile streaming platforms – with cricket at its core. And all this began in 1992 with a small, calculated gambling that changed the game forever.