Cricket-Sahara back as BCCI sponsor

Posted in Cricket

NEW DELHI, Feb 16 (Reuters) – Business conglomerate

Sahara Group on Thursday returned as the main sponsor of the

world’s richest cricket body, reversing its earlier decision to

end all commercial ties with the Indian cricket board (BCCI).

Sahara will also continue as the Pune franchisee of the

Indian Premier League (IPL) Twenty20 tournament, group chairman

Subroto Roy and BCCI president N. Srinivasan said in a joint

statement.

“Sahara confirms that it will continue sponsorship of the

Indian team. Sahara may want to exercise its right to assign the

sponsorship as per the agreement,” they said.

Citing instances where it has been denied “natural justice”

in IPL, Sahara on Feb. 4 snapped a decade-long “one-sided

emotional relationship” with the board.

Sahara’s existing sponsorship deal, at $719,000 per match,

will end on Dec. 31, 2013.

Sahara bid $370 million to win the IPL Pune franchise in

2010 and invested $100 million in Force India for a 42.5 percent

stake in the Formula One team last year.

(Reporting by Amlan Chakraborty in New Delhi; Editing by Ed

Osmond; To comment on this story: email

sportsfeedback@thomsonreuters.com)

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