Wednesday, March 19, 2008

Chennai Super Kings - Vijay and Nayan, the team's star ambassadors. The IPL Maniac is on Now!

Chennai Super Kings went for the 'biggest Indian youth icon'
Mahendra Singh Dhoni in their quest to form the best competitive squad in Indian
Premier League, VB Chadrasekar, head of the team on cricketing matters, said on
Tuesday.

Speaking to reporters after Tamil actor Vijay was formally
introduced as the team's 'star ambassador,' Chandrasekar, a former national
selector, gave a detailed account of how the team went about in the players'
auction last month and bid for Dhoni at a staggering $1.5 million.

"We were, like other teams, clueless in the first round (of
bidding). However our decision to go in for four batsmen, all rounders and a
bowlers, including stars like Makhaya Ntini, Muttiah Muralitharan and Joginder
Sharma
went in our favour to help us field a cohesive and competitive squad," he
said.

Referring to Matthew Hayden, who was involved in controversies
in India's recent tour to Australia, he said cricket fans have always
appreciated entertainers.

"People pay to watch aggression on the
field. It is a misconception that Hayden will not be focused on the game. They
are all professionals. They will make a very good part of a winning team."

Vijay said, "Dhoni is a good and great leader. I want to be with him
and the team during matches. Being a Tamil, I want to support Chennai Super
Kings and be part of its winning ways," he said.

The actor said he
was passionate about cricket and watched India's matches played at home and
abroad, with his son.

Former India opener Krish Srikkanth said Dhoni
was the biggest brand ambassador
in India and Vijay is next only to superstar
Rajnikanth in popularity.

"We want Chennaites to support the team
and make them win the IPL tournament."

Regarding merchandising and
revenue sharing from IPL matches, TS Raghupathy, Executive President of India
Cements, said, "We are allowed to have our team logo on both sides of the
players' T shirts and helmet. The BCCI's profit will also be shared among the
eight teams. We are planning to merchandise the team's T shirt and caps with our
logo in shopping malls. We are yet to take a call on the revenue side."

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