Wikipedia

Natalie Germanos

For the Greek songwriter, see Natalia Germanou.

Natalie Germanos (born 1981 or 1982) is a South African cricket commentator, freelance journalist and radio personality.[1][2]

Career

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Natalie pursued career aspirations in journalism and she obtained a sports communication degree, and she also majored in broadcast journalism.[3] She obtained formal education in broadcasting including how to organise technical and production crew before engaging in broadcasting.[3] Despite not having exposure to top flight cricket at any level, she managed to secure commentary gigs in South African television and radio programmes. Being an outsider, she initially faced constraints and logistical hurdles to enter broadcasting industry especially in the context of cricket commentary.[4][3]

She received an offer to deliver commentary for the 2005 Women's Cricket World Cup, through a serendipitous occasion when her fitness trainer apparently had a network and contacts with some of the personnel at the South African Broadcasting Corporation, who recommended Natalie to immediately contact the mobile number of one of the members at the South African Broadcasting Corporation to check out on any possible opportunities available to secure a commentary or broadcasting role for herself.[3] It was through a phone call, Natalie managed to unleash the opportunity of joining the commentary lineup for the 2005 Women's Cricket World Cup which was held in South Africa.[3] She later pursued her career as a radio commentator for the South African Broadcasting Corporation beginning in 2005.[5][3]

She went onto prolong her commentary career with SABC TV and has also endured a stint at Test Match Special. In November 2018, she was selected as one of the commentators by the International Cricket Council for the 2018 Women's World Twenty20.[6] She served in as commentator collaborating with the Test Match Special to deliver live commentary for the matches involving the 2019 Cricket World Cup.[7] In October 2021, she was chosen as one of the commentators by the International Cricket Council for the 2021 Men's T20 World Cup.[8] She was part of the commentators panel which was named by the International Cricket Council ahead of the 2022 Women's Cricket World Cup.[9] In October 2022, International Cricket Council included Natalie as one of the commentators ahead of the 2022 ICC Men's T20 World Cup.[10] During a group stage match played between Pakistan and the Netherlands during the 2022 ICC Men's T20 World Cup, she received widespread media attention for having climbed atop of the Optus Stadium in Perth, while wearing a safety harness as she incorporated a paradigm shift approach to deliver commentary in an unexpected manner while standing at the top of the stadium.[11][12]

In February 2023, Natalie was named by the International Cricket Council as one of the commentators in the ICC's commentators' panel for the 2023 ICC Women's T20 World Cup.[13][14][15] In July 2023, she was roped in as one of the commentators for the inaugural edition of the Major League Cricket in the United States of America.[16][17] In September 2023, International Cricket Council named Natalie as one of the members of the ICC's panel of commentators lineup for the 2023 ICC Men's Cricket World Cup.[18] She was named in commentary panel for the 2024 Women's Premier League.[19] She was included as part of Star Sports commentary panel ahead of the 2024 Indian Premier League.[20] In May 2024, International Cricket Council named Natalie as one of the commentators for the 2024 ICC Men's T20 World Cup.[21] In October 2024, International Cricket Council included Natalie as one of the commentators for the 2024 ICC Women's T20 World Cup.[22]

References

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  1. ^ "Girls aloud". Cricinfo. Retrieved 2024-12-08.
  2. ^ column, Sofa so Good: Rob Houwing’s weekly TV. "Natalie Germanos: A well-prepped pro in Caribbean series". Sport. Retrieved 2024-12-08.
  3. ^ a b c d e f "'Was so nervous, I think my tongue was swollen in my mouth': Natalie Germanos on her first broadcasting experience and challenges of profession". Firstpost. 2018-03-21. Retrieved 2024-12-08.
  4. ^ admin. "Natalie Germanos on cricket". You. Retrieved 2024-12-08.
  5. ^ "It's Just Not Cricket". Media Watch. 2009-04-13. Retrieved 2024-12-08.
  6. ^ ICC (2018-11-07). "Widest ever broadcast coverage for the first standalone ICC Women's World Twenty20 announced". ThePapare. Retrieved 2024-12-08.
  7. ^ "Sri Lanka v South Africa in Cricket World Cup - Riverside, Durham". BBC Sport. Retrieved 2024-12-08.
  8. ^ ICC (2021-10-15). "ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2021 Commentators and Broadcasters released". ThePapare. Retrieved 2024-12-08.
  9. ^ "ICC Women's World Cup 2022: Australia's Alyssa Healy named 'Player of the Tournament'". The Times of India. 2022-04-03. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 2024-12-08.
  10. ^ "T20 World Cup 2022: Full list of commentators and presenters for the T20 WC". Wisden. 2022-10-16. Retrieved 2024-12-08.
  11. ^ "Commentator climbs atop stadium during T20 World Cup. Watch stunning video". The Indian Express. 2022-10-31. Retrieved 2024-12-08.
  12. ^ https://www.hindustantimes.com/trending/t20-world-cup-2022-commentator-stands-atop-stadium-in-australia-to-deliver-commentary-from-clouds-during-t20-match-101667200458369.html
  13. ^ "Van Niekerk in women's T20 World Cup commentary panel". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 2024-12-08.
  14. ^ column, Sofa so Good: Rob Houwing’s weekly TV. "Women's T20 World Cup: Little commentary overlap from SA20". Sport. Retrieved 2024-12-08.
  15. ^ icc. WT20WC: Natalie Germanos picks her top 5 players of the group stage. Retrieved 2024-12-08 – via www.icc-cricket.com.
  16. ^ Editorial (2023-07-13). "Natalie Germanos, Graeme Smith among MLC commentators". Club Cricket SA. Retrieved 2024-12-08.
  17. ^ "From Natalie Germanos to Sunil Gavaskar: Here's the elite panel of commentators for MLC 2023". Cricket Times. 2023-07-14. Retrieved 2024-12-08.
  18. ^ "ICC unveils the full list of commentators for ODI World Cup 2023". Cricket Times. 2023-09-29. Retrieved 2024-12-08.
  19. ^ "From Sanjana Ganesan to Natalie Germanos: Full list of sports presenters and commentators for WPL 2024". Cricket Times. 2024-02-28. Retrieved 2024-12-08.
  20. ^ "IPL 2024 Commentators List: Who is Doing Commentary On Star Sports In Indian Premier League Season 17?". Mykhel. 2024-03-17. Retrieved 2024-12-08.
  21. ^ icc (2024-05-24). "ICC announce star-studded commentary panel for Men's T20 World Cup 2024". www.icc-cricket.com. Retrieved 2024-12-08.
  22. ^ icc (2024-10-02). "ICC TV to Deliver Comprehensive Broadcast Coverage with star-studded commentary team for Women's T20 World Cup 2024". www.icc-cricket.com. Retrieved 2024-12-08.
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