The Hindu Business Line : Zee launches Rs 100-crore cricket league

New Delhi April 3 If you can't get a share of the game, create your own. And that's what Zee Group's gone ahead and announced, the Indian Cricket League waving a prize-money of $1 million (Rs 4.28 crore).

Mr Subhash Chandra, Chairman, Zee Group announcing the new league, a joint venture between Essel Group and Infrastructure Leasing & Financial Services Ltd (IL&FS), committed a corpus fund of Rs 100 crore, about a tenth of its failed bid in 2004 for the television rights of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

"A professional league is the need of the hour as is a killer instinct in the players," said Mr Chandra. "It is time for some or one of us in the private and public sectors to step up and partner together to commit the financial resources necessary to help the sport which is a national obsession," he added, stating that the league was not in conflict, but complementary to the BCCI. The BCCI meanwhile has acknowledged receiving a letter from Mr Chandra "seeking permission to start the Indian Cricket League". The Board is however yet to take a decision on the matter, clarified the BCCI Secretary, Mr Niranjan Shah.

Doing a Kerry Packer?

Critics have drawn parallels to the Kerry Packer series launched by Australian TV tycoon Kerry Packer in 1977, soon after he was denied television rights by the Australian Cricket Board. Packer though did manage to win over a host of top cricketers of the day.

In 2004, Zee Telefilms bid $260 million (about Rs 1,113 crore) for a four-year contract with BCCI. But the contract was cancelled after ESPN-Star Sports challenged the bidding process in court. Currently Nimbus Communications owns the rights to all BCCI cricket till 2010, with an offer of $612 million (Rs 2,619 crore) in early 2006.

The new league is to start off with six teams or clubs, and Zee expects the numbers to go up to 16 in three years' time, with four international players in each team. It promises to send out talent scouts for future stars, across the 35 States in the country. The annual feature is expected to take-off around October this year in the Twenty20 format, and upgrade to One-Day Internationals later.

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