Live Cricket Is Back As Vanuatu Broadcasts Cricket Final To The World

Cricket fans can finally see some live cricket. All the international and major domestic events are currently off due to the coronavirus pandemic. If not the pandemic, the fans would have been enjoying the Indian Premier League right now. However, the tournament has been suspended indefinitely by the BCCI.

And at a time when almost the entire world is at a standstill, Vanuatu is set to host a competitive cricket final this weekend. Vanuatu Cricket Association chief executive Shane Deitz, the former South Australia left-hander, has invited anyone missing live action to tune in to a live stream from the tropical island in the South Pacific.

Hello world, live sport is back!!!!! @vanuatu_cricket will be live streaming the Women's Super League Final tomorrow and a Men's T10 Exhibition match. Jump on our Facebook page to join in the fun @dizzy259 @AusWomenCricket @WHITE_FERNS @robelinda2 @TrentWoodhill @darren_lehmann pic.twitter.com/ANSMqvWsvh

— Shane Deitz (@Deita551) April 24, 2020

“It’s one of the only live sports around the world at the moment. We can showcase a bit of cricket for everyone who is in lockdown,” Deitz told the Associated Press.

“Bored sports fans can see something a bit different. We can offer some entertainment – that’s what we’re trying to do,” he added.

The Tafea Blackbirds and the Power Sharks are playing off on Saturday morning in a women’s match, with the winner playing the Mele Bulls in the women’s domestic league final.

A condensed men’s exhibition match starts at 11am local time (5:30am IST) with the women’s final to follow at a stadium Deitz is calling the VCG – the Vanuatu Cricket Grounds in the capital Port Vila, on the island of Efate. Fans in India could watch the game on Facebook. The organisers are setting up four cameras and commentary for the online stream on Vanuatu Cricket’s Facebook page.

According to the report in Associated Press, cricket is a serious sport in Vanuatu, which has roughly 80 islands and a population of nearly 300,000.  In the past, Deitz said stars including former Australia captain Steve Waugh and fast bowler Merv Hughes visited Port Vila.

As far as Deitz is concerned, he moved into coaching initially in New Zealand, then in Bangladesh and has lived for five years in Vanuatu after playing first-class cricket in Australia for nearly a decade.

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