Shafali Verma
Shafali, Jemimah Lead Viral Men’s T20 World Cup Campaign (Credits :"X")

Overview:

In many cases, broadcasters promote women’s competitions by featuring male stars, similar to when Rohit Sharma fronted a campaign urging fans to back the 2025 Women’s World Cup.

JioStar, the broadcast rights holder for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026, has been widely praised for its build-up campaign ahead of the tournament starting February 7 in India and Sri Lanka. The standout feature is the casting, with players from India’s World Cup-winning women’s side leading the promo for the 20-team event.

Jemimah Rodrigues, Deepti Sharma, and Shafali Verma are the faces , featuring prominently and stating with conviction that the ICC trophy won’t leave India.

“November 2, 2025, was the day a long-cherished dream came true. Now the focus shifts back to the field to rise again and celebrate with our colours flying high. This time, it’s the men stepping into the spotlight. One trophy is already with us, and we’re resolute about making sure the other remains in India,” Jemimah and Shafali said in the video.

“After all, our boys are as strong as girls,” Shafali added, a remark that quickly went viral across social media.

To reinforce the concept, leading women players are shown wearing the men’s team kit, including captain Suryakumar Yadav’s jersey, spotlighting a role-swap storyline that has impressed audiences.

The ad has been widely described as a refreshing change because it flips the marketing approach. In many cases, broadcasters promote women’s competitions by featuring male stars, similar to when Rohit Sharma fronted a campaign urging fans to back the 2025 Women’s World Cup.

Fans wasted no time praising Star Sports for the fresh concept behind the promotion. “Never been a fan of their promos, but @StarSportsIndia has hit it out of the park with this one. Never imagined there would come a day when our women’s cricketers would be seen promoting the men’s game. Kudos to the concept team. Now, over to the men to win that,” one fan wrote on X.

V M Suriya Narayanan is a passionate cricket writer who has been following the game since 2007. With a background in Civil Engineering (B.E.), he blends analytical thinking with a deep understanding of...