Parthiv Patel co-founds SportzEngage, launches AI cricket platform CRiQ

Former Indian cricketer Parthiv Patel has entered entrepreneurship after 25 years in cricket, joining SportzEngage as co-founder and launching CRiQ, an artificial intelligence-powered platform designed to help players analyse and improve their performance.

Patel announced the venture on social media, saying he wanted to help shape the future of the game. He has partnered with entrepreneurs Kunal Abhishek and Shamik Datta to develop technology focused on cricket training, performance analysis and talent development.

CRiQ is designed to make performance feedback more accessible to players, coaches and academies. Users can record their practice sessions on a smartphone and upload the footage for analysis, receiving personalised feedback to identify areas for improvement and track progress over time.

According to the platform’s website, its video-analysis tools include performance metrics such as ball speed, pitch maps and trajectory tracking. The service is being developed to bring data-led insights to players who may not have access to specialist analysts or advanced training equipment.

AI to support coaching, player development

The platform’s focus is on using video and artificial intelligence to provide more structured feedback during training. By analysing practice footage, CRiQ aims to help players better understand their technique and monitor changes across sessions.

The intended users include individual cricketers, coaches and academies. For coaches and training centres, the platform could also support player assessments and progress monitoring.

In an interview, Patel said his experience as a player, captain, scout and coach had reinforced the need for data to play a greater role in cricket. He has also worked in talent scouting and coaching with Mumbai Indians and Gujarat Titans after his playing career.

Patel emphasised that AI would complement rather than replace human coaching. “The best coach will always beat AI. But the best coach using AI will beat the best coach not using AI,” he told The Times of India.

Beyond practice analysis

SportzEngage also plans to explore broader applications in cricket intelligence, including talent identification and live-match analysis. According to the report, potential areas include ball tracking and performance analytics for domestic competitions, leagues and broadcasters.

The launch comes amid growing interest in sports technology that uses video analysis and data to support athlete development. For grassroots players in particular, smartphone-based tools could offer a more accessible entry point to performance analysis, although their effectiveness will depend on the quality of the insights and how coaches and players use them.

With CRiQ, Patel is moving from competing and working within cricket to helping develop technology for its next generation. The venture’s stated aim is to make performance insights more accessible across different levels of the game, from individual players to organised academies.