The Architects of American Cricket

​Tuesday, June 30th at 7pm EST 6pm CST 4pm PST

​For decades, cricket in the United States existed on the margins despite having millions of passionate fans. Today, the sport is experiencing unprecedented growth, fueled by visionary entrepreneurs, investors, and community builders who transformed a fragmented landscape into a thriving ecosystem.

​Join Vijay Srinivasan, co-founder of Willow TV and a driving force behind Major League Cricket, and Venu Palaparthi, co-founder of DreamCricket and one of the pioneers of grassroots cricket development in America, for a conversation on building the sport from the ground up. Together, they will explore the evolution of cricket media, youth development, professional leagues, investment, and infrastructure, while sharing lessons learned from turning a community passion into a national movement.

​This session will examine what it takes to build a sport in America, the role South Asian leaders have played in cricket's rise, and why the next decade could be transformational for the game in the United States.

​Speakers:

​Vijay Srinivasan

​Vijay Srinivasan is a former American media executive, sports entrepreneur, and technology professional widely recognized as a key architect behind the growth of cricket in the United States.

Vijay is the co-founder of Willow TV, originally an internet streaming platform for U.S.-based cricket fans which evolved into the dominant satellite and cable cricket network distributed across major pay-TV platforms.  Willow was acquired by The Times of India Group in 2016.  Following that acquisition, Vijay, partner with his Willow TV co-founder Sameer Mehta and a Times Group executive to launch American Cricket Enterprises (ACE), securing strategic rights to develop a professional domestic ecosystem.

ACE raised over $120M funding from high-profile technology leaders, including Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and Adobe CEO Shantanu Narayen.  ACE has since launched Minor League Cricket in 2021 and Major League Cricket in 2023.  

VIjay earned a B.S. in CS from North Carolina State University in 1992 and went on to secure a Ph.D. in Computer Science from Duke University in 1995.

Venu Palaparthi (Moderator) 

Venu Palaparthi is the co-founder of DreamCricket, known for launching one of USA's earliest online cricket portals.  To this day, DreamCricket.com is the only website that follows the USA Cricket team all year round.  DreamCricket owns and operates the online retailer - DreamCricketStore.com, indoor cricket facilities and a cricket academy.  DreamCricket Academy is New Jersey's preeminent academy, which has sent 8 players to Team USA, including the current captain of USA Women's team and the current Vice Captain of the USA Men's team.  

DreamCricket operates seventeen cricket teams in NJ across all age groups, including three all girls teams.  In 2021, DreamCricket acquired a majority stake in the New Jersey Stallions, a leading Minor League Cricket team.  Venu was a seed investor in ACE.  In 2025, a DreamCricket-led consortium acquired 17 acres in NJ to build the region's first cricket club featuring a regulation-sized turf wicket cricket field.

During the day, Venu works on Wall Street.  He earned his bachelors from BITS Pilani in 1992 and got his MBA from the University of Texas at Arlington in 1994.

​About South Asians in Sports (SAIS)

​South Asians in Sports is the premier network of professionals across the sports industry. From the field to the front office, we're building a global community that connects, amplifies, and elevates South Asian excellence in sports. Learn more at sainsports.com.