MUMBAI: DSport will bring live action from the second edition of Laver Cup, a men’s tennis tournament between teams from Europe and the rest of the world to be held in Chicago from 21-23 September 2018.
For the first time, tennis legends Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic will be seen on the same side of the net playing the doubles fixture for Team Europe. They will take on Jack Sock and Kevin Anderson in doubles at the United Center.
The three-day tournament, a joint initiative between TEAM8, Tennis Australia, the USTA and Jorge Paulo Lemann, will witness a team of six of the best tennis players from Europe competing against six of their counterparts from the rest of the world. While Björn Borg is captain of team Europe, John McEnroe is leading team World.
With a memorable first edition held at Prague last year, tennis enthusiasts across the world witnesses two of the greatest rivals in the history of the game Federer & Nadal, teaming up for a doubles partnership against Rest of the World.
Tag: DSport
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DSport to broadcast Laver Cup from 21-23 September
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DSport to broadcast inaugural edition of Afghanistan Premier League
MUMBAI: Cricket fans in India will be treated with yet another overseas competitive cricket league from 5 to 21 October, as DSport will bring live cricketing action from the inaugural edition of the Afghanistan Premier League.
There are going to be 23 thrilling T-20 matches played across a span of 17 days. The T20 franchise based tournament will witness five teams in its inaugural season having over 35 overseas players across 10 nations representing different teams and battling it out to emerge on the top. The launch of the Afghanistan Premier League will also give a chance to some emerging players to play against and alongside the world’s best players.
Speaking about the association, Discovery Communications India senior VP and general manager – South Asia Karan Bajaj said, “We are excited to partner with Afghanistan Cricket Board to broadcast the inaugural edition of Afghanistan Cricket League in India. We expect huge traction for the league given the presence of super stars of cricket and the fact all the matches will be played at prime time in India.”
Speaking on the occasion, Afghanistan Cricket Board CEO Shafiqullah Stanikzai said, “We are delighted that the APL T20 will be carried to close to 100 million homes in India through the broadcast on DSport. We expect a keenly fought competition which is sure to enthrall the cricket loving viewers in India."
Talking about the association with the Afghanistan Premier League, Lex Sportel Vision MD and CEO RC Venkateish said, “We are delighted to partner with Afghanistan Cricket Board to produce this league and telecast the same on DSport. We look forward to deepening our association with the young and enthusiastic Afghan cricket establishment, not just for this tournament but for future tournaments as well.”
Star player Chris Gayle said, “I have played T20 leagues across the world but I am especially excited to be part of inaugural edition of Afghanistan Cricket League. I can see Afghanistan emerging as a future global cricket power– the young talent that has emerged from the country is indeed impressive. The new league will offer a huge opportunity to the young players of this emerging cricket nation to learn from the best in the world.”
Afghanistan was given the rights to play Test after playing top class international cricket last year, where it debuted against India. Afghanistan stands eighth in T20 ranking and has also qualified for the 2019 World Cup which bears testimony to the massive growth of cricket in this country. With the presence of some highly talented players in Afghanistan like Rashid Khan who tops the table in the best bowlers category and Mohammad Nabi who is world number two in the lll rounder category in the T20 format, Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) is all set with this one of its kind league in order to provide a major platform for emerging players to showcase their talent and enter the world of competitive cricket.
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DSport to air India’s first fitness league IFL
MUMBAI: The fitness industry in India has seen an uptake in the last few years. The advent of technology has been one of the crucial factors that led to consumers taking a greater interest in fitness. For enthusiasts, there is a new league to follow – the Indian Fitness League (IFL), which will be broadcast on DSport.
The brain behind this league is Tarun Gill, once an investment banker but followed his passion and became a fitness enthusiast, expert and influencer. The league is self-funded by Gill, which will be on air from the first week of September with a total of six episodes on Saturdays at primetime slots. There will be 40 players divided into eight teams of five players each. The league is in a reality show format which is pre-recorded and will be aired on DSport for six weeks. “It is a platform for the masses to showcase their fitness talent on Indian television,” Gill said.
The man is on a mission and wants to change the perception of people who relate fitness to bodybuilding. “Actually it’s not; fitness has a lot to do with being healthy and fit. Everybody is so obsessed with aesthetics, six packs, and big muscles,” he added.
The demand for fitness products and services has grown by leaps and bounds over the last decade. In this evolution, a vital role is played by fitness enthusiast and influencers who want to change the living style of the masses.
Praxis Global Alliance, a global business research and solutions firm, along with its thought partner YourNest, released a global report earlier this year on the emerging sports, fitness and wellness (SFW) market in India. The report highlighted the potential of SFW market to grow from $35 billion in 2016 to $90 billion by 2022 at a CAGR of 17 per cent in India. However, a fact worth noting is that a major portion of these revenues will be driven by the consumption of fitness wearables.
People in India have started thinking about a healthy lifestyle and are moving towards health, well-being, good looks and confidence. Resistance training, aerobics, Zumba, aerial yoga, Pilates, MMA, kickboxing etc are the current trends.
The show is produced by Glint Entertainment, which launched in the year 2005 with a group of three people – Sunil Dhankar, Tinu Sharma and Amit Bhardwaj.
The selection process was conducted in 10 different cities Mumbai, Bangalore, Guwahati, Kurukshetra, Jaipur, Chandigarh and others. The test included a fitness test with many activities and after that an interview round which was conducted by Gill himself.
The league is sponsored by Gaurs Developers, a real estate company in Delhi. It is powered by another developer company called Investors Clinic and the supplement partner is Yoga Bars.
According to the 2017 Deloitte India report, the fitness industry is worth more than $1.1 billion.
Gill pointed out that, “Fitness is not just about how many gyms you can open up, supplements and protein powders you can sell. It also has a lot to do with eyeballs, which means, how many people actually want to see something on fitness. A market opens up as people’s acceptance to it. Season 2 is in the planning stage and the dates are not yet locked, but it will happen for sure,” he concluded.
With the first season rolling out in the first week of September, the ratings will show how it contributes to changing the mentality of the masses.
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Colors Marathi adds traditional sports with Kusti Champions League
MUMBAI: The local sports scenario in India is taking off on TV. Colors Marathi, Viacom18’s regional GEC, along with Maharashtra Wrestling Championship League (MWCL) Sports and Maharashtra State Wrestling Association together announced the launch of Kusti Champions League (KCL) – Apla Banda, Khel Zinda.
Organised by MWCL Sports in association with Maharashtra State Wrestling Association, the live telecast of KCL will be aired exclusively on Colors Marathi and OTT app Voot. The league will premiere on 7 October 2018 and conclude its inaugural season with the grand finale on 28 October 2018. KCL will serve as a mega platform for the sport by inspiring and creating opportunities for local Maharashtrian players in the field.
Talking to Indiantelevision.com, Viacom18 head regional entertainment Ravish Kumar said, “Colors Marathi is delighted by the opportunity and down the road, we will continue to look forward to sports which are rooted and are a part of our tradition. This is first of its kind we are getting into, especially in the regional space.”
KCL will be played by six teams consisting of 72 players in total. KCL has selected over 300 players from across Maharashtra for an auction process. Each team will consist of eight men and four women who are professionally trained in kusti. The cities participating in KCL are Mumbai, Pune, Nashik, Aurangabad, Nagpur and Kolhapur. A total of 90 matches across 21 days will be played on mat and soil at Balevadi Stadium, Pune in Maharashtra.
“If you look at the sport, it is very deep rooted throughout Maharashtra, with a long history and tradition and present at grassroot levels. It’s a great partnership as Colors Marathi is also rooted in terms of its content, being a regional channel we really appeal to the length and width of the state,” he added.
“To uplift the sport further with an international approach towards mat wrestling, Kusti Champions League collectively aims to bring contenders from six regions of Maharashtra on one platform and establish them as strong contenders for Olympic 2020,” said KCL founder Pushkaraj Kelkar. “We want to take wrestling to every nook and corner of Maharashtra, give it the deserved fame and subsequently, create an international platform for the sport,” he added.
Talking about the ad rates of KCL, Kumar said, “As the matches will be telecast at early prime-time from 5:30 to 6:30 pm, we are also waiting to see how the market will respond as we are doing it for the first time. The ad rates will be lower than that of primetime.”
The six teams are Jigarbaaz Nashik, Kolhapur Shahu, Jaabaaz Aurangabad, Narveer Nagpur, Zunzaar Pune and Ranayoddha Mumbai. Each franchise will be given a salary purse of Rs 30 lakh in which it has to buy a minimum of 12 players.
Maharashtra State Wrestling Association and Maharashtra Olympic Asociation General secretary Balasaheb Langdesaid, “Kusti, the most ancient sport of Maharashtra will now be presented to the audience through Colors Marathi. Prior to this, kabaddi has been viewed in league format which was a commercial success for both the players and organisers. Similarly, to ensure that this Kusti League is a successful initiative, we would require the support of the people of India. This league will play a vital role in the player’s morale for the 2020 Olympics.”
KCL COO Pradeep Iyengar said, “Wrestling has been one historical sport that has always contributed to India’s sporting prowess, and we are proud to be associated at the state level to take it into the next phase of upliftment and are keenly looking at least five medals from the state at the 2020 Olympics. Kusti Champion League is committed to bringing out the best from the state’s best.”
The official radio partner for Kusti Champion League Season 1 is Radio City.
Earlier this year, DSport acquired the rights for Nidahas trophy, a tri-nation series tournament featuring India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. The channel joined hands with Viacom18 to live telecast the series in Hindi commentary on its mass entertainment channels Rishtey Cineplex and Cineplex HD.
In BARC week 10, Rishtey Cineplex climbed to the first position in the Hindi-speaking market with 545,931 impressions (000s) sum. It managed to match pubcaster DD Sports viewership leaving behind DSport in the urban plus rural (U+R) category. “This viewership was very impressive and it also brought to light that if people like a channel they expect to see everything on it,” Kumar concluded.
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Anirban Lehari and Shubhankar Sharma to represent India at the PGA Championship, 2018
MUMBAI: The 4thand the Final Golf Major of the year ‘The PGA Championship 2018’ will take place from 9th to 12th August, 2018 at the Bellerive Golf Course. Live action from the tournament will be broadcast for the Indian golf enthusiasts on DSPORT, a premium sports TV channel by Discovery Communications. The 100th edition of the championships will broadcast on the channel from 10:30 pm (IST) onwards. The historic course last hosted the PGA Championship back in 2013. With dense rough lining the fairways, sprawling bunkers that are surrounded by multiple greens and weather conditions affecting scoring makes Bellerive a very challenging course to play on.
The centennial edition of this prestigious tournament will once again see a strong line-up of marquee golfers competing to become the ‘Champion Golfer’ and lift the iconic Wanamaker Trophy. The ‘PGA Championship’ will witness the world’s best golfers competing for a handsome prize purse of $10,500,000. All eyes will be on the defending champion Justin Thomas who will face robust competition from players like Tiger Woods, Rory Mcllroy, Jordan Spieth, Justin Rose and YE Yang.
Shubhankar Sharma who turned in a creditable performance making the Cut in The Open at Carnoustie in July 2018 will be leading the charge for India.
Francesco Molinari, who recently won ‘The Open’, will be high on confidence to compete in this final championship aiming to win it and close his season on a high. Jason Day with his back to back victories in the Torrey Pines and Quail Hollow has shown consistency which is why he will be a player to look forward to.
The first ‘PGA Championship’ took place in 1916 and since then has become a huge platform for golfers to showcase their talent and skills with the club. DSPORT will bring the feel and fervor live from the Bellerive Golf Course for the Indian golf enthusiasts and give them an opportunity to witness 4-days of top-notch live golfing action.
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Dsport to broadcast ‘British Open’ live for viewers in India
MUMBAI: Dsport will broadcast the 147th edition of the much awaited ‘British Open’ live in India. The tournament will commence from 19 July 2018 at the Carnoustie Golf Course, Scotland.
The British Open 2018 will once again see a strong line-up of marquee golfers competing to become the ‘Champion Golfer of the Year’ and lift the iconic Claret Jug. The likes of Dustin Johnson, Rickie Fowler, Patrick Reed, Rory McIlroy, Tommy Fleetwood, Kevin Chappel, Tiger Woods, Anirban Lahiri along with defending champion Jordan Speith will fight for a handsome prize purse of $10.8 million out of which $1.89 million will be the winner’s share.
The prestigious championship will be from 19 -22 July 2017 at 7 pm.
The British Open also known as the Open Championship is one of the four major championships in Golf.
Dsport’s portfolio of live sports content includes the best of wrestling, football, cycling, horse-racing, golf, tennis, motorsports, and extreme sports from around the world. From the Tour de France to the Six Nations Rugby, the prestigious British Open in golf to football’s Chinese Super League.
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DSport to telecast ‘Hero Challenge’ live for the first time in India
MUMBAI: The 2018 edition of night golf contest Hero Challenge will, for the first-time, be telecast live in India on DSport. It will take place from 12 am to 10 am on 11 July. Apart from DSport, the contest will be available on European Tour’s platforms.
A strong line-up of marquee golfers such as Rafa Cabrera Bello, Andrew Johnston, and India’s rising star Shubhankar Sharma, amongst others, will vie for the top honours at the Hero Challenge at this year’s Scottish Open.
Since the inaugural Hero Challenge was hosted at the British Masters in 2016, the contest has become very popular with players and spectators alike. After the successful debut for the night-golf event, Hero MotoCorp – the world’s largest manufacturer of motorcycles and scooters – reaffirmed its commitment to innovation at the European Tour by extending the Hero Challenge by another three years and to three marquee events – the British Masters, Aberdeen Standard Investments Scottish Open and DP World Tour Championship, Dubai.
DSport is available on all DTH platforms (Tata Sky Channel #495, Airtel DTH Channel #304, Dish TV Channel #630).
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DSPORT brings live Mixed Martial Arts action with ‘Bellator 201’ for Indian viewers this Saturday
MUMBAI: Indian viewers will be treated to some of the fiercest & fiery Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) Action this Saturday with Bellator 201. The Live event will be telecast on DSPORT on Saturday, 6:30 am onwards. The lovers of MMA can witness a nail-biting encounter between the current Women’s Flyweight World Champion Ilima-Lei MacFarlane & challenger Alejandra Lara. Both athletes will face each other in the octagon for the coveted Flyweight World Title in the 125lbs category. The Undefeated champ MacFarlane will make her seventh Bellator appearance at the event, the most by any female in company history.
Bellator 201 will also feature other enthralling contests leading up to the main title fight event. Apart from the title match Saad Awad will take on Ryan Couture in the Lightweight category, Kristina Williams will face Valérie Létourneau in the women’s flyweight category & lastly Juan Archuleta will encounter Robie Peralta in the Feather weight category.
Bellator’s journey kick started way back in 2008, since then this league has been giving a platform to all the MMA fighters by recognizing their talent and showcasing this talent to the world. DSPORT is honored to bring all the action, giving a chance to the Indian viewers and enthusiasts to be a part of this highly entertaining tournament.
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LIVE Coverage of Tour De France on DSPORT this year
MUMBAI: Indian sports lovers will be treated to the biggest and the grandest of cycling spectacles, this July. The ‘Tour De France 2018’, one of the most awaited events on the annual cycling circuit will be broadcast live on DSPORT, a premium sports TV channel by Discovery Communications. The three-week long, intense 21 stage race will kick start on 7th July from Noirmoutier-en-l’Île, a small island off the Atlantic coast of France. DSPORT will broadcast live all 21 stages of the 105th edition of the race for the cycling enthusiasts between 7th – 29th July 2018.
The legacy of this extravaganza dates back to 1903, when it was first inaugurated and since then this tournament has been a part of the French culture taking place annually. The 105th edition of Tour De France will have a total of 176 riders across 22 teams competing in the 21-stage race covering 3351 km to emerge victorious. The Tour will be the shortest of the century and this will be the fifth time a tour has set out from the Vendée department. The race will pan across 8 Flat Stages, 5 Hilly Stages, 6 Mountain Stages and 3 Altitude Finishes.The 2018 Tour de France will include a total of 26 mountain climbs or hills and altitude finishes. The participants will also get a 2-day rest in between the tour. The tour moves across various geographical locations; across 12 in the Alps, 4 in the Massif Central and 10 in the Pyrenees. This year, the tour will be even more competitive with climbs from the Alpe d‘Hues and Col de Tourmalet which have never been featured in any of the previous editions.
A total prize money of around 2.3 million Euros will be awarded to the teams and riders, including 500,000 euros to the winner of the final individual general classification. With big names like Chris Froome, Nario Quintaa, Romain Bardet and Richi porte, DSPORT is delighted to brings all the action to fans in India, giving an opportunity to the Indian viewers and cycling enthusiasts to witness the grandeur of this tournament rated consistently amongst the top 10 spectacles in Sports in the World.
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DSport reaches 110 mn households in a year
MUMBAI: DSport, the sports TV channel by Discovery Communications, has achieved the milestone of reaching 110 million households in India. The channel was launched on 6 February 2017 and achieved the milestone within one year of operations in India and has expanded its distribution across all DTH and cable platforms.
It has broadcasting rights for some of the elite sporting events with 4000 hours of live programming.
The channel claims to have grown consistently across the country and has been ranked among the top channels in motorsports and golf this year. In the car and bike racing genre, DSport has a 72.9 per cent market share. Moreover, in Golf the channel says it enjoys the second spot with a comfortable 32.2 per cent market share. Even in combat sports, the channel has witnessed a growth of close to 200 per cent in viewership.
In cricket, DSport brought the live action from the 2018 Nidahas Trophy and Pakistan Super League 2018 to the Indian audiences. In football, it has the exclusive rights to the Brazilian League, Major League Soccer and Chinese Super League. In golf, it telecasts three out of the four major PGA tours around the world including the historic British Open, PGA Championship and Augusta Masters.
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