TEN Sports wins TV rights for Australia tour

Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) have signed a television broadcasting agreement with TEN Sports for the forthcoming Australia tour of Sri Lanka. Australia are due to play five ODIs and three Tests in February and March.

TEN Sports, a satellite sports channel owned by the Dubai-based Taj Television, was one of five companies that had bid for rights. PCN Sports, Sony Max and TWI had pulled out of the bid process after an initial expression of interest while TEN Sport's offer was preferred to one made by WSG Nimbus.

SLC had initially planned to sell the broadcasting and sponsorship rights for a three-year term but the low bids tabled prompted the board to sell only for the Australia tour. SLC will now try to confirm two triangular tournaments involving India in 2005 and 2006 to make their rights more attractive to potential broadcasters.

TEN Sports, who also own all rights for CBFS managed tournaments in Sharjah and Morocco as well as all matches played in Pakistan, had been clear frontrunners in the bid process after negotiating a deal last September that gave them important country-specific rights for the Australia tour.