Indian Premier League (IPL) opened its curtains back on April 18, 2008, at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore. The first-ever match of IPL's inaugural season was played between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Kolkata Knight Riders. The match ended in the favour of Bollywood actor, Shah Rukh Khan's team, KKR as they beat RCB by 140 runs. The 17th season of IPL kick-started on March 22, 2024, between Chennai Super Kings and Royal Challengers Bangalore, and the former won the match by six wickets.
Whether we talk about the quality of players that the Indian Premier League has given to the Indian national cricket team or the way it has raised the quality of cricket in India, IPL has indeed made multiple positive marks in India. One such positive impact that IPL had across India was the emergence of female commentators and presenters.
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Across the 17 seasons of India's most watched sports league, we have seen numerous women presenters taking centre stage and winning audiences' hearts with their knowledge about the game. Thus, today, we are going to talk about some of the most famous women anchors, who created a name for themselves in cricket broadcasting after impressing viewers with their analysis during the pre-match and post-match shows during IPL matches. So, without further ado, let's take a look at them!
Mandira Bedi is often regarded as the first Indian female anchor in cricket. During the ICC Cricket World Cup in 2003 and 2007, she was the one, who grabbed everyone's attention with her cricketing knowledge and anchoring skills. She not only dominated sports events for years to come but even opened the gates for so many girls, who used to dream of becoming a presenter or anchor in the Indian sports industry.
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Even at the age of 50, Mandira Bedi featured as the anchor of 2023 Women's Premier League and proved that she is the 'OG Women Presenter of India', who started it all back in 2003. It wasn't a cakewalk for Mandira to make a name for herself in a male-dominated industry but it was her passion for anchoring and sports that paved the way to her successful career as a sports presenter.
It's impossible not to mention Mayanti Langer when we are listing down the names of famous Indian women presenters. The 39-year-old sports presenter is one of the most celebrated female sports anchors in India. Apart from featuring as a presenter at the 2018 IPL and 2019 IPL, she has been dominating sports broadcasting for some years now.
For the unversed, Mayanti Langer started her career as a sports presenter with football and not cricket. Her first show as a sports anchor was on Football Cafe, which used to be telecast on Zee Sports. In the coming years, Mayanti was seen working as a presenter at renowned tournaments like the 2010 FIFA World Cup, 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup, 2014 Indian Super League, 2015 ICC Cricket World Cup, 2019 Cricket World Cup, and many more.
Over the years, we have seen a series of female IPL presenters, but there's no denying the fact that even to this very day, Shonali Nagrani is the name that comes to everyone's mind whenever we talk about women anchors in IPL. The crowned 2003 Femina Miss India International started her journey as a sports presenter with the Champions Trophy in 2006.
In the coming years, Shonali Nagrani worked as a presenter at the 2007 ICC Cricket World Cup, 2009 ICC World Twenty20, 2008 Extraaa Innings T20, and 2010 T20 World Cup. After gaining a lot of exposure to these cricket tournaments, she broke the headlines when she joined ITV in 2011 to host the IPL. The glamourous presenter went on to host IPL for four consecutive seasons. Apart from her anchoring skills, Shonali also grabbed a lot of headlines for her bold photoshoots and style quotient, which she often showcases through pictures on her social media handles.
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Ace model, Shibani Dandekar dons a lot of hats on her professional front and being a sports presenter is one of them. The stunning diva grabbed eyeballs when she featured alongside cricketing legend, Andrew Flintoff and famous English presenter, Paddy McGuinness during the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup. The tournament not only brought a lot of fame to Shibani but also gave her ample opportunities to make her mark in the sports industry.
Shibani Dandekar's first appearance as a cricket anchor happened in 2011, when she co-hosted the iconic show, Extraaa Innings T20, on Sony Max during IPL. The model received a series of compliments for her anchoring skills, beauty, and impressive knowledge of cricket and its tactics.
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It would not be right if we do not mention Tanya Purohit in this list, as she is often regarded as the 'Cutest sports presenter in India' by a large section of viewers. It was in the year 2021 when Tanya was shortlisted for the Star Sports panel that was assembled from the IPL. From her fashion quotient to her soothing voice and critical discussion on cricket matches with fellow experts, Tanya is still regarded as one of the most loved female sports presenters in the country.
For the unversed, apart from working as a sports presenter, Uttarakhand-based, Tanya Purohit had also worked with Bollywood actress, Anushka Sharma in the film, NH10. Years before making her acting debut in Bollywood, she played a small role in a Doordarshan show.
Sanjana Ganesan is married to Indian bowler, Jasprit Bumrah, who is considered as one of the greatest bowlers in the history of Indian cricket. Their love story is often compared to legendary Spanish footballer, Iker Casillas, who also fell in love with a sports presenter, Sara Carbonero. For the unversed, it was during the 2013-2014 IPL season when Sanjana and Jasprit fell in love after interacting during the pre-match and post-match presentations and interviews.
Talking about Sanjana Ganesan's career as a sports anchor, she has been working in the sports industry as a presenter since 2016. During this time, she has hosted major cricket tournaments like 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup, 2020 Women's T20 World Cup, 2023 Women's Premier League, T20 World Cup in 2021 and 2022.
Archana Vijaya entered the world of cricket back in 2007 when NeoCricket approached her to host a show called Cricket Tadka Madke. The stunning diva received a lot of attention from the viewers, and due to her growing popularity, she was given the chance to co-host the IPL with Shibani Dandekar in 2011, 2012, 2014, and 2015.
After a brief break, Archana Vijaya returned to host IPL in 2017 and made the record of being the only female presenter to host six IPL seasons. It was a massive achievement for the sports presenter, who was also the winner of Channel V's Get Gorgeous Season 1. While she received a big thumbs up from cricket enthusiasts for the way she used to host the IPL show, it's fair to say that people were mesmerised by her beauty and boldness quotient.
The stunning model, Nashpreet Kaur appeared as a presenter in the 2020 IPL and instantly made a place in everyone's hearts. Despite completing a degree in biomedicine from the Univesity of Melbourne, Nashpreet moved into the world of modelling. After working in the modelling industry for some years, Nashpreet made her acting debut in 2013 with a short film, Strings. However, she shot to fame after appearing in IPL, courtesy of her anchoring skills and pictures from breathtaking photoshoots.
In your opinion, who is the most celebrated female cricket presenter in India? Let us know.
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