World Cup 2023: Ind-NZ semi-final sets digital concurrent viewership record

Ind vs NZ semi-final: As Kohli and Shami were writing the history at Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai, another one was being made on the top-right corner of the Disney + Hotstar stream

The first semi-final match in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 between India and New Zealand witnessed several records being broken. With his 50th ton, Virat Kohli surpassed Sachin Tendulkar to become the player with the highest number of centuries in the one-day international (ODI) format. Mohammed Shami became the fastest bowler to take 50 wickets in the World Cup matches.

Check South Africa vs Australia live score and match updates in ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 semifinal here
 

Check South Africa vs Australia live full scored in ICC World Cup 2023 semifinal here

But as history was being made at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, another was made at the top-right corner of the Disney + Hotstar stream.

As Kohli was nearing his 50th ODI century, Disney + Hotstar recorded a concurrent viewership of 53 million, the highest ever for a match. It surpassed the previous record of 44 million, set during the India vs. South Africa match on November 5. Before that, the India vs New Zealand round-robin match had garnered 43 million concurrent viewers.

Simply put, at least 53 million people witnessed Kolhi become the highest scorer in a single edition of a World Cup. They witnessed him bow to Tendulkar, give a quick flying kiss to his wife, Anushka Sharma, and look into the sky as if thanking his late father- the stuff of fairy tales.

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Kohli's feat was witnessed not only by Tendulkar but also by batting legends Sunil Gavaskar, Viv Richards and football legend David Beckham.

With Shami's seven-wicket haul, India reached the finals of the World Cup 2023, which will take place on Sunday, November 19, at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. Shami was also awarded the "Player of the Match" title.

This is the fourth time India has reached a World Cup final. They won two out of the previous three times, in 1983 and 2011.

For Disney + Hotstar, too, the tournament has been nothing short of magic. According to a report by The Economic Times (ET), the live digital broadcast of the first 34 matches of World Cup 2023 reached 450 million viewers. Compared to the last edition in 2019, consumption of this edition of the World Cup is up 10 per cent to 244 billion minutes. Reports had earlier suggested that the tournament may bring Rs 13,000-20,000 crore into the Indian economy.

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Will this record be broken as India plays the final in Ahmedabad? We will have to wait till Sunday to find out.