ILT20 brings ‘Smartball’s’ ‘Smarter Play’ technology to its inaugural tournament

• Smartball will aid the tournament in providing cutting-edge technology to enhance performance, offer real-time analysis and catapult data-driven fan engagement

• The franchise-style tournament - International League T20 - boasting of 6 teams & 34 matches to be played across the UAE - will make its debut in January 2023  

ILT20 aims to take its fan engagement into the stratosphere by partnering with 'Smartball' for the opening edition of the International League T20. When the six franchises face off against each other in the enthralling tournament, starting January 2023, the Smartball will assist ILT20 in providing real-time, in-depth analytics, and serve to enhance player performance much to the delight of cricket-fans across the globe.

Smartball’s cutting-edge technology consists of an ‘IoT’ device in the nucleus of the ball, which acts as the connection between various devices and portals - technology - communication - cloud, tracking various data points such as the speed of the ball, revolutions per minute, distance the ball travels after being struck by a batsperson, detection of the ball connecting with the bat or, in fact, any surface, measuring the change in direction the ball propels through the air or off the pitch, among many other needed and engaging statistics. Through the Bluetooth-driven technology, the data given by the Smartball will be transferred to the tournament’s match analytics provider who will then provide this integral data to the tournament’s commentary, franchise and statistician teams – for the benefit of all.

Speaking about the introduction of the Smartball, Mubashshir Usmani, General Secretary, Emirates Cricket Board said, "With technology growing at a rapid pace, we have a responsibility of not only keeping up with but staying well ahead of the times, commitment to innovation is one of the core values of the ILT20 and this partnership is a testament to this.” “Therefore, we are delighted to introduce Smartball in the first season of the ILT20.” “Data has become an integral part of the cricketing world, and our way of life, today's fans want to know all kinds of data about their favourite stars in action. We are eager to witness the effect of Smartball in the upcoming season."

Sportcor has revolutionized sports statistics and has helped athletes, umpires and other stakeholders to make better decisions. Speaking about their product, Zane Hall, CEO SportsCor said “We, SportsCor, are the leaders in this market of providing incomparable live data. The technology contained within these hand-crafted Kookaburra balls sends information from the ball to the end user in no more than 2.2seconds – an extremely valuable tool for any commentator or high performance manager needing split-second data.” “Once the ball is in the bowler's hand we are already thinking 'how is that bowler going to exercise his skill, his craft and impart his art of deception toward the bats person', the Magnus force phenomena of Speed – Spin – Pre Bounce that comes into play is a metric that needs to be thoroughly explored. This is the exciting data, and story, we will see in real-time at the ILT20.”  

 Inviting two well-respected greats of the game to share their views, Wasim Akram said; “This is something new, something exciting, something useful. As a bowler, you can gauge how the ball will swing or react on a certain pitch, but with this technology you, again as a bowler, can go back after the game and assess the actual data and understand how to start (the next game). As a commentator I’ll be able to see the swing, the pace off the pitch, from the air and how much it spins, that’s something new and will be a lot of help.” While Dwayne Bravo commented; “The direction cricket is going this (technology) will definitely come in handy. Data is very important, it’s crucial for captains, coaches and the player, (so) the feedback the ball will give you will help prepare you (for the next game) and move you forward in the tournament.” “It’s good, I played with this ball last season and wasn’t aware. It’s something for the bowlers.” Watch and learn more about these two cricketing greats using and explaining the Smartball ‘here’.

Making its debut in January (2023), the inaugural ILT20, which has received multi-year ICC approval, will be played in a 34-match format across the UAE’s exemplary, world-class Cricket facilities in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah. Cricket fans across the world can catch the LIVE telecast of this exciting cricket league on the League’s Official Media Partner ZEE’s linear channels, digital platform Zee5, as well as Zee Cinema SD, Zee Cinema HD, Zee Anmol Cinema, &Pictures HD, &Flix SD, &Flix HD, Zee Zest SD, Zee Zest HD, Zee Bangla Cinema and Zee Thirai. 

 Franchise teams, comprising 84 International and 24 UAE-based players, include Abu Dhabi Knight Riders (Kolkata Knight Riders), Desert Vipers (Lancer Capital), Dubai Capitals (GMR), Gulf Giants (Adani Sportsline), MI Emirates (Reliance Industries), and Sharjah Warriors (Capri Global). ILT20 news, updates and interactive chat can be found via @ILT20Official on facebook, twitter, instagram, tiktok, snap chat and linkedin.