Celebrity partnerships in gaming usually stop at branding. MetaSports Interactive is trying to go further. Cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar has become a strategic investor in the Hyderabad- based company behind mobile cricket strategy game Hitwicket, while also joining as a brand ambassador and in-game presence. The financial terms and valuation have not been disclosed.
Founded by Kashyap Reddy and Keerti Singh, MetaSports launched Hitwicket in 2020. Unlike reflex-heavy cricket titles, the game focuses on tactical decisions — when to attack, how to plan a chase, which bowler to target and how to manage a virtual team as owner, coach and captain.
Tendulkar’s role is intended to extend into that product layer. MetaSports says discussions with him are helping the team understand how elite players read bowlers, fields and match situations. His likeness is also expected to appear as a playable character, while the partnership will extend across content and brand activations.
Hitwicket currently claims 20 million+ players across more than 120 countries, with users spending around 51 minutes per day in the game. Revenue has doubled over the past six months, according to the company, while more than 97% of revenue comes from in-app purchases. MetaSports now wants to take Hitwicket to 100 million downloads within three years.
The strategic investment follows $20 million in user-acquisition funding from London-based Metica in April 2026. Existing investors and backers also include Prime Venture Partners, Horizon Ventures, Harsha Bhogle and The Chennai Angels.
The more interesting part of the partnership is therefore not Tendulkar’s celebrity reach. Hitwicket is betting that insights accumulated across a 24-year international cricket career can help make its decision-making engine feel more authentic. If that works, Tendulkar becomes less of a conventional brand ambassador and more of a product input for MetaSports’ attempt to build an Indian cricket game with a global audience.
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