Pakistan’s government-owned sports channel PTV Sports is not telecasting the country’s Boxing Day Test match against Australia due to the placement of advertisements for surrogate betting companies at the MCG.
For the first time in decades, viewers will no longer be able to watch live men’s team cricket matches on PTV Sports, the official broadcast partner of the Pakistan Cricket Board. The channel stopped broadcasting the series after the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting declared zero tolerance towards alternative betting providers last week. Officials are being asked not to display ads during live sporting events.
Pakistan Tour to Australia, Test Series airing on PTV Sports pic.twitter.com/kQJfZhynMK
– PTV Sports (@PTVSp0rts) 26. December 2023
In the latest information posted from Melbourne, Pakistan vs Australia cricket series 2023-24 will be held from 26 December 2023 instead. ”
PTV Sports also added that it had worked with its parent channel in Australia to remove “branded advertising placements (virtual advertising) from on-site replacement companies.”
So no airing of Aus-Pak Test in Pak because of the ban on surrogate betting pic.twitter.com/DUI1Do5fDV
– Osman Samiuddin (@OsmanSamiuddin) 26. December 2023
“As soon as the issue is resolved, the series will be broadcast live.” As a national broadcaster, PTV is committed to resolving the issue to avoid future failures of such broadcasts within Pakistani territory. It is working. ”
In a previous advisory, IBM asked all other ministries and agencies not to work with agency companies operating illegally in the country. Furthermore, the media was strictly warned not to “promote gambling parlor alternatives through advertising of any kind.”
During live coverage of the Australia-Pakistan Test on PTV Sports, logos of two alternative companies were observed to be displayed repeatedly over several days.
Viewers can watch the ongoing Test live on Ten Sports in Pakistan and live coverage on Tamasha and Tapmad.
Subscribe to the Wisden Cricket YouTube channel for post-match analysis, player interviews, and much more.
