Last-gasp TV deal agreed for England’s Test cricket series in India to avoid blackout

TNT Sports will show the five-match series that starts next week, narrowing avoiding a blackout in the UK

England’s much-anticipated Test tour of India will be televised in the UK by TNT Sports, which has signed a deal to screen the series just a week out from when the first ball is due to be bowled.

A spokesperson for TNT confirmed that the broadcaster has agreed a five-year contract to exclusively show India’s home series in all formats, which includes England’s next white-ball trip in early 2025 and another Test tour at a date to be determined.

The possibility of a UK blackout for the upcoming five-match series between teams ranked second and third in the world, starting on 25 January in Hyderabad, has therefore been averted.

Ben Stokes’ England take on India next week (Mike Egerton/PA)

India remains by far the sport’s most lucrative market but deals with the country’s governing body have often gone to the wire, with rights distributors eager to recoup sizeable initial outlays.

When England last toured the country for a Test series, in 2021, a similar situation unfolded and ended in an 11th-hour bid from Channel 4 as it made an unexpected re-entry into the market.

But with the terrestrial channel pumping resources into this year’s Paralympics, there was understood to be no interest in a similar move this time around, leaving Sky Sports and TNT as the other outlets.

Sky was the de facto home of all England tours between 1990 and 2017 but TNT has shown the last two Ashes series in Australia and stepped in to screen Jos Buttler’s white-ball team in the Caribbean last month.

Having secured this marquee series, TNT seems likely to take the world commentary feed and assemble a studio team in the UK given the short turnaround. TalkSPORT holds the radio rights.