Mumbai, March 24 - The first-ever pink ball Test in the country between India and Bangladesh last November was viewed by 43 million people and clocked 2 billion viewing minutes -- which was also the highest viewership for a first day of any Test match played over 2018-19, the BARC has said.

After Sourav Ganguly became the BCCI President, he ensured India take up the pink ball challenge after initial resistance when the team refused to play a D/N contest in Australia.

The second Test between Virat Kohli's India and Bangladesh was played under lights at Eden Gardens amid a lot of hype and packed crowd. The match, part of the ICC World Test Championship, got over early on Day 3 with the hosts winning by an innings and 46 runs to wrap the series 2-0.

It was a no-contest but the thrill of watching cricketers play under lights in white flannels with a pink SG ball saw many glued to their TV sets.

Beyond cricket, the most watched sports in 2019 were kabaddi, wrestling and football. Together, they consumed 85% of viewing minutes of non-cricket events.

Sports channels saw a growth of 17% (viewing minutes) over 2018.

IANS