MUMBAI: The recently concluded Videocon Cup may have been an overall damp squib but has worked wonders for Max.

The second and decisive half of the first match (9 pm to 11.30 pm) between India and Pakistan played on 21 August got ratings of 8.3 in the C&S 4+ Hindi-speaking markets, according to Tam data. As a result, the channel went straight to the 10th position on the Tam ratings chart in the above mentioned market.

Speaking on the same, Max business head N P Singh said, "Despite the rain and a five-hour delay in the start of the Indo-Pak match, Max delivered 6.9 TVRs (average) amongst all individuals across all C&S homes across all India as surveyed by Tam."

In the major metros, Mumbai pegged a high of 11.3 TVRs, while Kolkata and Delhi turned in 9.55 and 9.52 respectively.

"What is especially noteworthy is that female viewership delivered an unprecedented 5.3 TVRs for the match. Female viewership in key metros was 8.3 in Mumbai, 9.2 in Delhi and 7.6 in Kolkata," added Singh.

In comparison, on DD1 the same match got ratings of 2.6 in the time slot 9 pm to 11.15 pm in the C&S 4+ Hindi-speaking markets according to Tam data as the channel stood in the 68th spot among the top 100 shows. Hence, Max was ahead of DD1 across all India in the Hindi-speaking markets. Also notable is the fact that in the non C&S 4+ Hindi-speaking market, DD1's telecast of the match stood in the 6th position with TVRs of 21.6 in the same time slot.

Across all India markets, Max pegged 6.9 against DD's 1.92; in the Hindi speaking markets, Max fared even better, averaging a TVR of 8.83 against DD's 1.91, while in the top 4 metros, Max pegged 7.85 against DD's 1.67, and in the top 6 metros, Max ratings were 8.87 while DD's were recorded at 1.59.

An official release from Max informed that in a single match telecast, Max reached out to 27.6 million individuals in C&S homes across India, which is approximately 32 per cent of the total universe of 85.5 million individuals.

"Overall, this performance is an excellent lead-in to the forthcoming ICC Champions Trophy 2004 in England, which is undoubtedly the world's biggest ODI (one day internationals) Cricket tournament in 2004, and where Max will showcase its popular Extraaa Innings in full strength," said Singh.

Max, which has already unveiled it's ad campaign with Mandira Bedi for Extraaa Innings will bare it's plans for the ICC Champions Trophy tomorrow (1 September) at a media do.