(Reuters) – More Indians searched for cricket tournament Indian Premier League (IPL) this year than coronavirus, which came second, according to 2020 search trends data released by Google.
India is the world’s biggest market for cricket, and this year’s IPL was shifted out of the country and held in the United Arab Emirates due to disruptions from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Stuck at home, Indians also looked up how to make cottage cheese, increase immunity, and followed the global Instagram trend of making Dalgona coffee, the search giant said https://bit.ly/3718Oj3.
India imposed the world’s biggest lockdown towards the end of March, which eventually ran up to May, before restrictions were gradually eased.
During the lockdown, there was a surge in local “near me” queries, led by searches for food shelters, COVID-19 tests, crackers and liquor shops.
“The most interesting search terms were centered around ‘How to’ and ‘What is’ lists, reflecting society’s move to work from home and dealing with the pandemic,” Google said.
The U.S. election was the third most popular search, with President-elect Joe Biden making for the most looked-up personality.
Globally, “Coronavirus” topped searches, followed by “Election results”, and “Kobe Bryant”.
(Reporting by Philip George; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila)
