22 March,2010 08:43 AM IST | | Chandran Iyer
Group feels it makes business sense to own Pune IPL team as it can make most of city's infrastructure as well as facilities at nearby Aamby Valley City
When business conglomerate Sahara India made the highest bid and chose Pune, it was not just for the kicks of owning an IPL team. It was also a sound business decision, according to the group.
Sahara hopes to make the most of the city's infrastructure as well as its proximity to the Aamby Valley City
that it has developed in picturesque Lonavla.
The Pune IPL team Sahara now picks is likely to be housed in the Aamby Valley, an integrated hill city spread over 10,600 acres.
Chairman of the Sahara India Pariwar Subrata Roy Sahara told MiD DAY, "I am happy that we have got Pune. It is one thing to sponsor sports and a totally different thing to own a team. The city is beautiful, with excellent infrastructure, and we have Aamby Valley City, which is now well connected not only by road but also by air from Mumbai. I am sure all this will augur well for us."
Roy said having Aamby Valley at hand would also be "nice for the players" as they can stay there and fly to the venue of a match within the shortest possible time because of the connectivity now available.
The Sahara group company Sahara Adventure Sports Limited had bid for Ahmedabad, Pune and Nagpur. Sahara bid the highest amount of $370 million (Rs 1,702 crore). The group chose Pune as its franchise. Sahara's Pune team will join the action in the 2011 edition of the IPL T20 cricket tournament. The other new team that will be in the IPL is Kochi, won by the Rendezvous Group.
Abhijit Sarkar, head of Sahara India Corporate Communications, was present in Chennai for the bidding. Asked why the group bid so high, he said, "It is not just for kicks that we want to own the team. There is vast potential in this city. It is not only developed very well industrially, but is also a major hub for education. And with the largest sports stadium coming up in Hinjewadi, it definitely makes good business sense to own the Pune team.
"Our involvement with IPL, beyond the business aspect, is also a manifestation of our deep-rooted commitment towards promoting sports and encouraging youngsters towards sports."
The company is yet to disclose the name it will give to its team, or which players it will they want to have.
"This is just the beginning. We have a lot of work to do. It will be premature to talk about these matters now," said Sarkar.
