New Zealand Cricket (NZC) plans to put an augmented-reality batting simulator in front of fans at Black Caps home matches during the India tour of New Zealand. The free-to-play ANZ BatZone, offered in partnership with sports technology company BatFast and powered by NZC's Major Sponsor ANZ, invites fans to pick up a bat and test their skills against the simulator, with the aim of connecting fans with the game and building on the match-day experience.
How it works
Fans face a range of delivery types in the simulator, and every shot is mapped on a digital wagon wheel. Built-in registration and queue management keep the experience moving, and live on-site and online leaderboards let participants compare scores.
Rollout
The activation is scheduled to begin with a community event in Christchurch on 21 October, then appear at matches in five cities between 22 October and 1 December:
- Christchurch
- Wellington
- Auckland
- Hamilton
- Tauranga, where Bay Oval hosts the Black Caps against India on 13 and 15 November
The tour opens with a five-match T20I series from 22 October, starting at Hagley Oval in Christchurch.
