The Marketing Hype

The cricket board has money but the basic theory about actively selling cricket, as though it is something difficult, is hard to believe. If you cant raise money from the game in India then there should be no market for water in the Sahara.

Cricket in India is an obsession and normal economics cannot explain its allure. Mention an event and sponsors come scra-mbling. When the last World Cup title rights were being negotiated, ad agen-cy Saatchi & Saatchi, felt 6 million to be the best price and anything above was a bonus. The rights went to ITC for 12 million. The cigarette giant gladly put money on the table and the deal was directly negotiated. No doubt such money is proffered because cricket provides high visibility and instant mileage. Pawan Munjal, of Hero, openly admits the massive surge experienced by his company through sponsoring a cricket cup.

 

The recently concluded Independence Cricket Cup was an eye-opener, because in many ways there was much that was wrong with it. The tournament came at the fag end of a long season, players were jaded, India had suffered a string of defeats and many felt cricket had reached a saturation point. For the first time, matches were scheduled for peak summer. To make matters worse Pakistan sent what resembled a second string as Sohail was banned, and Akram, Waqar and Mushtaq refused to come, choosing instead to pursue lucrative county contracts in England.

Though common wisdom suggested a lukewarm tournament, what happened was commercially stunning. The TV rights went for a hefty sum and tickets were sold out in no time. Doordarshan was inundated with requests for bookings, and was forced to insert ads between overs. Ultimately, Doordarshans haul from eight games, of which India figured in only three, was about Rs 42 crore.

These collections prove that in India there is no such thing as excessive cricket. It also clearly demonstrated that there is nothing more marketable than an Indo-Pak contest.

Pakistans skipper Rameez Raja was friendly and affable, while his team reduced the tension. This injection of sanity was needed because it enables greater contact between countries. If relations ease and reactions of supporters are less extreme, matches can be played more regularly. On the flip side, the game thrives on this traditional rivalry. Remove this competitive edge and it becomes just another event. For if we have India-Pakistan duel every other day with elaborate cordiality then the novelty will wear off.

However, before regular tours materialise, the sides will play in neutral Toronto in September for the Sahara Cup. The TV rights for the five games have fetched record fees. Each game is worth close to a million dollars and there are many other sponsors lining up to secure a slice of the action.

In India only films rival crickets capacity to raise money. Both defy commonly held views about economic reasoning. Films flop but money keeps pouring in for new ventures. Cricket, sustained by the nasha of crazed fans, keeps throwing up big money. So, is marketing cricket such a big deal?