Rohit Sharma joins LightFury Games as investor; eCricket closed beta to begin in September

Former India captain and cricket icon Rohit Sharma has joined gaming studio LightFury Games as an investor and will also feature as an officially licensed player in its upcoming cricket title, eCricket.

The announcement comes as LightFury Games prepares to begin a phased closed beta of eCricket in September 2026. The company said more than 300,000 fans have already signed up for the game, while its latest official teaser crossed one million views over the weekend.

Rohit becomes the eighth marquee cricketer to invest in LightFury Games. He joins MS Dhoni, Jasprit Bumrah, Hardik Pandya, Shreyas Iyer, Ravindra Jadeja, Tilak Varma and Sai Sudharsan as strategic investors in the company.


As part of his association with the studio, Rohit will be included in eCricket as an officially licensed player. LightFury Games said his experience at the highest level of cricket and understanding of the sport would contribute to its efforts to build an authentic and competitive cricket gaming experience.

The closed beta will give the first wave of players hands-on access to eCricket, with feedback from the community expected to inform further development and refinement before the game's wider launch later this year.

The latest teaser highlights Ultimate Squad, one of eCricket's core game modes. According to LightFury Games, the mode will feature a roster of more than 700 officially licensed cricketers from around the world, allowing players to build their own squads and compete using different combinations, match-ups and strategies.

Former Indian cricketer and television personality Navjot Singh Sidhu will also be part of the game as one of its official commentators. He will join a broader line-up of commentary voices planned for eCricket.

LightFury Games said eCricket is being developed around competitive gameplay, authentic cricket physics, broadcast-quality presentation, officially licensed players and high-fidelity visuals, with social and multiplayer features forming a central part of the experience.

“High-performance sport is built on preparation, precision and the pursuit of continuous improvement. I see those same values reflected in what LightFury Games is building with eCricket,” Rohit Sharma said. He added that the studio's ambition to create a world-class cricket experience from India was compelling and that he was excited to support the vision.

Karan Shroff, co-founder and CEO of LightFury Games, said the company's ambition was to build game franchises from India for a global audience. He described Rohit's investment as a defining milestone and said the response to eCricket, including its sign-ups and teaser viewership, demonstrated the scale of the opportunity in cricket gaming.

Founded in 2024 by Karan Shroff, Anurag Banerjee and Tina Balachandran, LightFury Games describes itself as an India-based AAA-focused game-tech studio. Its leadership team has worked on more than 40 AAA titles.

In 2026, the company raised a further $11 million to support the development of its global cricket gaming franchise. The round included institutional investors as well as strategic participation from Indian cricketers. The company said the completion of its Pre-Series A round takes its funding to two rounds, with backers including Blume Ventures, V3 Ventures, MIXI, Times Internet and strategic investors from the Indian cricket ecosystem.

LightFury Games said it currently has more than 120 developers and industry professionals working on its games. The studio aims to build globally competitive gaming experiences and strengthen India's position as a hub for game development.

The eCricket closed beta is scheduled to begin in September, with the wider launch planned for later in 2026.