THE entire nation will be able to tune in to England’s T20 cricket World Cup final against Pakistan.
Sky Sports have agreed to share the broadcasting rights of Sunday’s final with free-to-air broadcaster Channel 4.
PAEngland captain Jos Buttler was happy to hear that the final would be on free-to-air television.[/caption]
The sports channel had been the exclusive UK rights holders to the tournament and has been airing games on their channels.
The deal was reportedly agreed in principle before England’s semi-final clash against India.
Jos Buttler‘s side swept aside their opponents in a ten-wicket victory, in which he and Alex Hales chased down the target of 169 runs by themselves.
The win set-up a final between England and Pakistan, who beat New Zealand in their semi-final match.
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The match will be shown on Channel 4 and for free on Sky’s Showcase channel.
Captain Buttler admitted that he was happy to hear the news that the game will be accessible for everyone after the game against India.
He said: “We’d be immensely happy with that. That would be fantastic for the game in our country, as many eyes as we can get on that final would be great.
“That’d be brilliant if that happens. It’s important that we always look to grow our game and showcase cricket to the next generation especially, so we’d really welcome that if that was possible.”
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The match will start at 8am GMT at the MCG in Melbourne, 30 years on from their match in the 50-over final.
Jonathan Licht, Sky Sports managing director, said: “We know the importance of this game, so we are pleased to be able to share this great sporting moment with our whole nation thanks to our strong relationship with Channel 4.
“Whether you’re supporting England or Pakistan, this will be one to remember.”
Ian Katz, chief content officer at Channel 4, added: “We are thrilled that Channel 4 and Sky have struck this deal to make another great national sporting moment available on free-to-air television to audiences across the UK.
“As the days draw in, some thrilling international cricket from the southern hemisphere should offer some welcome cheer.”
It follows similar deals to the ones that saw Emma Raducanu’s US Open final victory and Lewis Hamilton’s world title shoot-out with Max Verstappen be shown on Channel 4.