Four telcos in race for BCCI series sponsorship

Four corporate houses from the telecom sector are in the race for bagging the series sponsorship rights of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

Telecom service providers Airtel and Idea Cellular, along with handset manufacturers Karbonn Mobile and MicroMax, are in the fray for securing the series sponsorship rights for the period 2010-2013, BCCI Secretary N Srinivasan said in a media release today.

These four had submitted the bids before 5 pm today from the 10 corporates who had picked up the Invitation To Tender from the BCCI (costing Rs 2 lakh), Srinivasan said.

The financial bids will be opened at the board's marketing committee meeting at its headquarters here tomorrow, he added.

The board had issued the tenders on August 11 for sponsorship of Tests, ODIs and Twenty20 Internationals in India and featuring the hosts for 31 months beginning this September.

The reserve price has been fixed as Rs 2 crore per match, according to BCCI's CAO Prof Ratnakar Shetty.

The board has debarred agencies, including those engaged in audio-video production services of live cricket, from participating in the bidding or representing any corporate entity in the process.