In the first test match between India and Pakistan at Kolkata’s Eden Garden in 1999, Sachin Tendulkar was given a run-out, becoming one of cricket’s most controversial umpiring decisions. The reason behind it is the appearance of Pakistan’s pacer Shoaib Akhtar on frame and collision with Master Blaster. Unfortunately, the umpire didn’t use a different camera angle to review the decision, which cost India the match.
From 1999 to 2023, cricket has transformed technologically and allowed umpires and experts to assess and analyse data. The Internet of Things (IoT) made its way from daily home-based and industrial applications to the cricket pitch in the form of smart cricket devices.
The global sports smart equipment market size is expected to grow at a CAGR of 8.1% from 2020 to 2027- Grand View Research
Whether its stump mike detected the sledging by Australian captain Tim Paine in the India-Australian Test Match in Sydney to detecting the fastest bowl of 161.3 Km/hr by speedometer in Cricket World Cup 2023, AI and IoT are leading the cricket with technical advancement.
Data-driven Pitch Report
The pitch report predicts the wicket condition, moisture, and possible spin via AI. With a support vector machine and a histogram of vectors, experts monitor and forecast the ball’s velocity, possible swing/spin, and moisture on the field during the night. The in-depth data-driven pitch report utilises IoT devices to help the cricket team make a batting/fielding decision after winning the toss and final the bowlers who can perform well on the specific pitch condition.
Data Analysis By Smart IoT Devices
In the last two decades, AI and IoT technologies have brought numerous advancements in cricket. From lightning bails, Snickometer, and Hawkeye’s ball tracking to the Spider cam, the better end data help umpire and team strategic staff make informed decisions.
As per the exclusive data shared by ICC, it has been analysing the score statistics, player on-field performance, and other match metrics using the SAP Hana Cloud Platform and SAP Lumira technology. Data is also reported being refreshed every 20 seconds to get updated analytics. The major blend of AI and IoT devices used for accurate data analysis widely used in cricket are CricScience, Criclytics, Insights by ESPNcricInfo, etc.
Anil Kumble’s Spektacom
Former Indian cricket team captain and founder of Spektacom, Anil Kumble, entered tech-based cricket by bringing Spektacom, based on the Power-bat concept. The company developed the lightweight Power Bat sticker in partnership with Microsoft’s Azure to provide real-time analytics of bat movement.
“Our vision is to bring cricket closer to the fans through interesting ways of engagement by using AI-based technologies. With Microsoft, we have been able to create a secure and effective solution which can stimulate and excite fan engagement.”- Anil Kumble- Founder Of Spektacom
The Power Bat is designed with a unique concept and works as an IoT device. This Azure-powered sticker easily sticks on the shoulder of the bat. When the ball comes in contact with the bat, it displays different parameters like bat movement, shot quality, twist impact, and percentage proximity of the ball’s contact in a measurement device called Power Speks. In this smart device, the company used advanced analytics and AI services to capture real-time analytics through a stump box and display it via a broadcaster.
StanceBeam
A Bengaluru-based startup, StanceBeam, launched an IoT device that captures the speed and angle of the bat at the point of impact with the ball. This IoT device can be fitted on the top of the bat’s handle and uses sensory control to record the maximum speed and show the power of the shot via connected devices. In the study of the Indian Institute of Science (IISc),) it was found that data from the sensors of StanceBeam correlates with the data of motion capture cameras.
“This is a new category; it’s good to see big names jumping into it.”
Amrinder Thind, Founder of StanceBeam, on a distribution deal with Kookaburra
Snickometer
A bat-edge decisive technology widely used by third umpires today is the Snickometer. The technology introduced by BBG Sports uses audio and visual evidence to detect any nick of the bat. Snickometer works on the simple IoT principle in which a sensitive microphone is attached to the stumps, which further connects to the oscilloscope, which tracks the sound waves. The recorded trace plays with the slow-motion video, which is detrimental to making the right dismissal decisions.
Zing Bails
In 2014, ICC World T20, Zing bails were introduced, made from a combination of plastic, metal, and other materials. Invented by Bronte Eckermann, an Australian company named Zing International works on an inductive loop and a sensor. The Zing bails glow whenever the bails dislodged from the rim of the stumps. By leveraging the IoT technology, it brings accuracy to the final umpire decisions of the run-out and hit-stump.
IoT and advanced AI technologies have become an extensive part of cricket day by day. Over the years, startups like StanceBeam and Spektocom have developed lightweight modern devices that present in-depth analytical data on the big screen. IoT-enabled sports equipment transforms the way players perform and track every moment precisely. These cutting-edge technologies will change the cricket landscape for spectators, umpires, and team staff in the coming years.
