The silent commentators at the T20 World Cup

Sing language interpreters from India Signing Hands made sure that hearing impaired audience of the matches involving India in the recently concluded T20 World Cup “heard” them

After calling the toss successfully at the T20 World Cup 2026 final on March 8 at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, New Zealand captain Mitchell Santner decides to field first, which brings the Indian openers to the middle. Before the Sanju-Abhishek could open with the bat, another duo, Mansi Dharmaraj Ombase and Vicky Shah, had launched into an ‘opening’ act, with gestures.

Standing next to playback singer Kavitha Krishnamurthy who was giving a soulful rendition of the National Anthem, this duo was interpreting it with sign language.

And more than 500 km away in Mumbai, a few of their colleagues from India Signing Hands, a Mumbai-based media and broadcast company, got ready to interpret every proceeding of the match.

For the second time, T20 World Cup was being inclusive in the sense of having sign language interpreters on board, and making the game more exciting for thousands of speech and hearing impaired cricket fans across geographies.

“Standing before a packed stadium to translate the National Anthem in sign language at a cricket stadium was a historic first in T20 and I had goosebumps. Vicky and I rehearsed backstage to give our best,” says a thrilled Mansi, who came from Mumbai, excited about this opportunity.

Since the tournament began, she and her colleagues had their hands full, quite literally, interpreting all the matches that India played thanks to the partnership with India Signing Hands and Jio Hotstar.