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Match Rooms are dedicated chat spaces for specific cricket matches, allowing fans to discuss the action in real-time. Create rooms for upcoming matches, join live discussions during games, or review finished matches with the community.

Creating a Match Room

Set up a new room for an upcoming cricket match in three simple steps.
1

Open the Create Room Modal

From the Rooms screen, tap the orange + button in the bottom-right corner.
2

Enter Team Information

On the first screen, enter the names of both teams:
  • Team 1: Enter the first team’s name (e.g., “India”)
  • Team 2: Enter the second team’s name (e.g., “Australia”)
Tap “Next” to continue.
Both team names are required. You cannot proceed without entering both teams.
3

Configure Match Details

Set the match timing and format:
  • Start Date: Tap to select the match start date and time
  • End Date: Tap to select the expected match end date and time
  • Match Type: Choose from ODI, TEST, or T20
The date pickers display in your local format (e.g., “Jan 15, 2026, 2:30 PM”).Tap “Next” to continue.
4

Configure Room Settings

Choose whether to open the chat immediately:
  • Yes: The room is unlocked and users can start chatting right away
  • No: The room is locked until you manually unlock it
You can change this setting later. Consider locking the room until closer to match time to keep discussions focused.
Tap “Create Room” to finalize and publish your match room.
Your room will immediately appear in the Rooms feed and be available for other cricket fans to join.

Browsing Match Rooms

The Rooms screen displays all available match rooms with powerful filtering options.

Room Status Filters

Use the filter chips at the top to view specific types of rooms:

All

View every available match room regardless of status

Live

Show only matches currently in progress

Upcoming

Display scheduled matches that haven’t started yet

Finished

See completed matches and their discussions

How Room Status is Determined

CricTalk automatically calculates room status based on start and end times:
  • Live: Current time is between start time and end time
  • Upcoming: Start time is in the future
  • Finished: End time has passed

Room Sorting

Rooms are intelligently sorted to surface the most relevant matches:
  1. Live rooms appear first (highest priority)
  2. Upcoming rooms appear next
  3. Finished rooms appear last
Within each status category, rooms are sorted by start time with most recent matches first.
The sorting ensures you never miss live match discussions!

Joining a Match Room

Enter any match room to participate in real-time cricket discussions:
  1. Browse the Rooms screen and find a match you’re interested in
  2. Tap on the room card to open it
  3. View the live chat and all messages from other fans
  4. Join the conversation by sending your own messages
Join rooms for live matches to experience real-time reactions to every wicket, boundary, and turning point!

Room Features

Real-Time Messaging

Match rooms support live chat functionality:
  • Send messages instantly to all room participants
  • See messages from other cricket fans in real-time
  • Messages appear immediately without refreshing
  • Engage in rapid-fire discussions during exciting match moments

Room Information Display

Each room card shows key match details:
  • Team names: Both teams playing in the match
  • Match type: ODI, TEST, or T20 format
  • Start time: When the match begins
  • Status badge: Visual indicator for Live, Upcoming, or Finished

Locked vs Unlocked Rooms

Room creators can control access:

Unlocked Rooms

Users can freely send messages and participate in discussions.

Locked Rooms

Users can view the room but cannot send new messages. Useful for matches that haven’t started yet.
Only the room creator can lock or unlock a room. If you join a locked room, you’ll need to wait for the creator to unlock it before participating.

Managing Your Rooms

As a room creator, you have moderation capabilities:

Locking/Unlocking Rooms

Control when users can chat:
  1. Open your room’s settings (available when you created the room)
  2. Toggle the lock status
  3. When locked, users can view but not send messages
  4. When unlocked, full chat functionality is enabled
Common use cases:
  • Lock rooms before match start to prevent off-topic chat
  • Unlock rooms when the match goes live
  • Lock rooms after the match ends to preserve the discussion

Updating Room Details

Modify match information if schedules change:
  1. Access your room’s settings
  2. Update team names, start/end times, or match type
  3. Save changes to update the room card for all users

Deleting Rooms

Remove rooms you created:
  1. Open the room you want to delete
  2. Access room settings
  3. Select “Delete Room”
  4. Confirm deletion
Deleting a room permanently removes all messages and cannot be undone. Use with caution.

Refresh & Load More

Pull to Refresh

Drag down from the top of the Rooms screen to refresh the list and see newly created rooms or updated statuses.

Infinite Scrolling

As you scroll through the rooms list, more rooms automatically load in batches of 20 rooms to ensure smooth performance.

Best Practices

Set up match rooms 24-48 hours before the match starts to give fans time to discover and join the room.
Enter precise start and end times to ensure the room status (Live/Upcoming/Finished) displays correctly for all users.
Consider starting with a locked room and unlocking it when the match begins. This keeps discussions focused on the actual game.
Select the correct format (ODI/TEST/T20) as this helps users quickly identify the match style and set expectations for room activity duration.
As a room creator, actively participate and set a positive tone for respectful cricket discussions.

Match Room Lifecycle

1

Creation

Room is created with team names, match details, and initial lock status.
2

Upcoming Phase

Room appears in “Upcoming” filter. Fans can discover and prepare to join.
3

Live Phase

Match starts and room automatically moves to “Live” filter. Peak engagement happens here.
4

Finished Phase

Match ends and room moves to “Finished” filter. Discussions continue with post-match analysis.
5

Archive

Room remains available for viewing historical discussions.

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