The International Cricket Council has declared Australia’s 2023 World Cup final win as the most-watched match in the sport’s history.
A press statement overnight revealed the entire tournament in India recorded one trillion live viewing minutes across the different broadcasts globally, a figure up 38 per cent on the last time India hosted the World Cup in 2011 and 17 per cent on the 2019 edition in the UK.
Fittingly, Australia’s shock win over India at Narendra Modi Stadium to claim the trophy attracted the largest viewership ever seen for a cricket match, with the TV audience peaking at 130 million according to ICC figures.
Aussie fans also tuned in on mass to see Pat Cummins’ side come back from a 0-2 start en route to claiming victory. In Australia, the ICC says there were 3.79 billion minutes of live viewing, up 92 per cent from 2011.
It’s also stated a remarkable 9.1 million Australians watched the tournament, up three million on the England and Wales-hosted World Cup.
India entered the World Cup final undefeated and with no chinks in its armour, but an impressive bowling performance by Cummins and co. kept the hosts to just 240.
From there, Australia was always in the box seat. Travis Head went on to forever cement himself as a big game player with a sublime century and Player of the Match honours in the fiercest of arenas.
The tournament also saw a 158 per cent increase in digital video views from the 2022 T20 World Cup in Australia.