IMG new bidder for Indian team sponsorship

Kunal Pradhan

Leading sports management company International Management Group (IMG) has bid to sponsor the Indian cricket team, a top company official said on Tuesday.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) are looking for a new sponsor after Indian cigarette-maker ITC pulled out of their deal following a government move to ban tobacco sponsorship.

"We put in a bid to the board last week," Ravi Krishnan, joint managing director (South Asia) at IMG, told Reuters from Bombay.

"We are waiting for a reply from the board. If we do get the rights, we may look to sell them to another company," he added.

Krishnan would not reveal the offer amount but denied local media reports that IMG was acting as a broker for a "processed food multinational".

ITC were paying 3.7 million rupees ($79,000) and 3.45 million rupees ($76,550) for each test and one-day international respectively till earlier this year.

India played 34 one-dayers and six tests in 2000.

BCCI's treasurer Kishore Rungta told Reuters on Tuesday a "foreign company" was among the bidders but did not name the firm.

The Indian board had opened four bids -- from 21st Century, Hero Honda, Gayatri Arts and Sporting Frontiers -- at a marketing committee meeting last month. But the BCCI had said it was not happy with the initial bids.

Rungta said of these only Hero Honda and Gayatri Arts had bid for team sponsorship. He said automobile company Hero Honda agreed to match ITC's contract while Gayatri Arts offered 4.5 million rupees ($95,950) for each test and one-day match.

Rungta said Gayatri Arts was an agent for another company but declined to name the firm.

The Indian board is eager to finalise the sponsorship before the national team leaves on May 25 on a test tour of Zimbabwe.

($1 = 46.9 rupees)

Mail Cricket Editor