Indiantelevision.com Team

(1 July 2010 2:50 pm)

MUMBAI: Television ratings for cricket are taking a hit from an overdose of the sport and the soccer World Cup. The Asia Cup, telecast on Neo Cricket from 15-24 June, had an average TVR of 1.7, lower than its earlier edition that had posted a rating of 2.9.

The final, which saw India beat Sri Lanka to win the trophy after a wide gap of 15 years, fetched a rating of 3.8. In 2008, the final between the same sides had earned a higher rating of 6.57.

The ratings are sinking somewhat even for the classic contest between arch rivals India and Pakistan. The match reaped a TVR of 3.9 as against 4.48 in the 2008 edition.

Cummulative reach for the tournament, however, has climbed to 81.7 million, up from 48.6 million in 2008. The India versus Sri Lanka final saw 47 million viewers tuning in compared to 23.2 million in the earlier version.