Rohit Sharma forays into the cricket metaverse with new NFT collection

Whether memorable would be among his few centuries, the ICC Golden Bat from the 2019 ICC World Cup, or the ball used to pick up his maiden IPL hat-trick for Deccan Chargers against Mumbai Indians in 2009, would certainly make for some amazing NFTs.

Nikhil Bardia, Head of Sponsorship Sales & Talent, Rise Worldwide, said, “This gives Rohit’s fans a chance to own a piece of history from his personal collection.”

“The team is building the next generation of consumer experiences, and I can’t wait to check out the super-cool Hitman NXT and 2D/3D avatars, which will be rolling out in the coming months,” Sharma said. They are managed by RISE Worldwide – Reliance Industries’ investment in sports in India.

Last month, the company announced $17.4 million in seed funding from Tiger Global, Kotue, Sequoia Capital India, Dapper Labs and others.

Company CEO Anshum Bhambri said, “We see marquee athletes as artists who create the best of their art moments on the playground. We are very excited to partner with Rohit Sharma, a pure cricketing genius, to create a new paradigm of athlete and fan engagement.”

FanCraze has signed a three-year deal with the International Cricket Council (ICC) for the rights to the catalog of its video and audio clips, which goes back to 1975. It is creating NFTs linked to specific clips, which cricket fans will be able to buy. Trade in packs and in the secondary market.

Each NFT will come with embedded meta-data — perhaps related to the number of runs scored by a player in a clip, or wickets taken, say — that will form the basis for a series of gamified apps that the company plans to launch. making plans. NFT owners will be able to participate in these apps while planning their strategies based on the strength of their collection.