Why is Fantasy Cricket more Admired than any other Fantasy Sports in India?

Fantasy sports were launched two decades ago for limited cricket fans only. With the keen interest of Indians in sports activities, fantasy sports gained quick popularity in the crowd. Predicted to grow more rapidly in the future and also dominate other industries not only in India but also around the world. 

Basically in Fantasy Cricket, one has to create a team of eleven players consisting of real-life players from the two teams facing each other in a match. Out of those players selected in your Playing XI, you have to decide who will be your Captain and Vice-Captain. The significance of a captain and Vice-Captain is extremely important in a fantasy team. That is because the Captain gets double points (2X Credits) whereas the Vice-Captain fetches 1.5X credit points unlike the other players on the team. According to a public survey, approx 77% of the sports fantasy players prefer cricket over other fantasy sports games in India. 

Although it is quite a controversial topic, there are still multiple reasons why fantasy cricket has taken over the market as compared to other fantasy sports in India! People enjoy playing fantasy cricket along with watching live matches. It enriches the feeling of the game according to the fantasy players. Users of fantasy sports feel Real11 is a safe platform for playing fantasy cricket online because of its safety features, privacy policies, seamless online transactions, and easy-to-learn gameplay which attracts sports fanatics to use this platform to enjoy fantasy cricket online along with live gameplay. 

Heritage of Cricket in India

India has a rich culture in sports post-independence. After the country became free from colonial rule, India witnessed a rise in the International cricket circuit. The prime moment came when the Indian Cricket Team under the captainship of Kapil Dev lift the World Cup trophy defeating the mighty West Indies at Lords, England in the Year 1983.

Ever since that time, India witnessed a constant rise in the field of cricket which indeed added four more international trophies in the cabinet under the leadership of Mahendra Singh Dhoni. Dhoni indeed became the first and only captain to have won all the four prestigious trophies in entire World Cricket history. Indians take it as an extreme matter of pride and carry it as an emotion for the rest of their lives.

The Ultimate Indian T20 League

The cherry on the top of cricketing fandom has been the Indian T20 League. Starting in the year 2008, it took very little time to win the hearts of millions of cricket fans around the globe. Now in its 15th season, the famous T20 format of aggressive gameplay reached the milestone of approximately 229 million television viewers in the year 2022.

This fast and aggressive nature of the T20 format was wholeheartedly accepted by the fans. Also, another reason for its popularity was it consisted of the legends of cricket playing along with players for the Indian domestic circuit playing under regional teams named after the famous towns or cities in India. 

Cricketers to Celebrities

Cricket is an emotion in India. Indians worship cricketers as their deities and believe cricket as their religion. People here respect cricketers and assume them as their idols or role models. The concept of live streaming bought all of them together and Fantasy cricket worked as a catalyst for binding them more tightly in the cricketing bond. Also, social media gave them space to interact and understand each other’s emotions and reactions towards the game of bat and ball.

Cricketers nowadays are also a part of brand endorsements for example the star Indian batsman Virat Kohli who has a whopping 193 million followers on Instagram. He is currently also named the third most followed athlete across the world! He owns the athleisure brand ‘One8’ which is a one-stop for athletes. It has a wide variety of shoes and other merchandise for sports enthusiasts. The uncountable fan plaques across different social media platforms is a commendable example of the fans’ dedication to the sport. Similarly, fantasy cricket apps know how to encore this relationship into virtual gaming. In fantasy cricket, one can include their favorite cricketers in their Playing XI and get a chance to grab big cash rewards if their team goes down to winning the contest.

Huge Viewership in India

Indian cricket fans are obsessed with cricket, may it be a 5-day long test match or a one-day format 50 overs match, or the aggressive T20 format. With the advancement in technology, there has been a rise in broadcasters aided by multiple OTT platforms. Hence technology changed from radio to monochrome TV to colour televisions and now OTT platforms which can be viewed on smartphones too.

Cricket draws about 93% of the sports viewers in India according to BAARC. In recent years due to advancements in technology and smartphones almost every hand, there has been a slight shift in the television viewership inclined towards the various OTT platforms. This is indeed engaging more viewers to get involved in live matches along with participating in fantasy cricket matches.

Stand out from other Sports 

Nowadays scenarios have changed a lot. Indian sportspersons are not only engaged in cricket but are also dedicating themselves to some other sports such as football, hockey, badminton, swimming, golf, wrestling, table tennis, lawn tennis, volleyball, kabaddi, etc. However, in sports leagues all around India, the Indian T20 League is the most famous and the oldest sports league in India. The other leagues such as football, kabaddi, and badminton are of lower popularity amongst fantasy sports players. However, apart from fantasy platforms, these non-cricketing sports brought about a change in the mindset of Indian youths that cricket is the prime sport amongst all. The recent international performances in various World Cups and victories in the Olympics inhabited a change in the increasing participation in non-cricketing sports in real-life and fantasy sports as well.