The Board of Control for Cricket in India will choose between Airtel and Sahara as the new team sponsors after the two firms were the only ones left in the hunt for bagging the rights at the end of the deadline for submitting the bids with the requisite security deposit.
The board had issued the tender on May 24 inviting companies to bid for rights for the Indian men’s team, women’s team, India A squad and the under-19 squad. From six firms who purchased the bid form, only Airtel and Sahara sent the security deposit before the Saturday deadline.
The BCCI has set a base price of Rs 2.5 crores per match for a three-and-a-half year period beginning July 1, 2010. This is, incidentally, much lower than the Rs 3 crores-per match price tag set by the board six months back.
The tender had failed to attract a single bid then. Sahara, the existing sponsors, came to the board’s rescue thereafter.