Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani's entertainment venture JioStar has terminated its broadcast deals in Bangladesh for the Indian Premier League cricket tournament, saying its local partner defaulted on payments, according to a document seen by Reuters. Bangladesh in January banned IPL broadcasts after one of its teams, Kolkata Knight Riders, dropped Bangladesh pacer Mustafizur Rahman on Indian cricket board's instruction, just as tensions rose between the two countries following the killing of a Hindu man in Bangladesh. "The agreement stands terminated with immediate effect," JioStar said in a letter dated February 17 to Bangladesh broadcaster TSports, which had sublicensed the rights from JioStar for IPL seasons from 2023 to 2027. IPL, the world's richest cricket league valued at $18.5 billion, enjoys huge popularity among the cricket-viewing public in Bangladesh, where the game is an obsession like it is in rest of the subcontinent. A separate JioStar letter, also dated February 17, showed the company has also terminated its broadcast deals in Bangladesh for the Women's Premier League cricket tournament over similar defaults.

Source: The Telegraph March 30, 2026 13:35 UTC