Former Indian cricketer and renowned commentator Sunil Gavaskar, film actor Nagarjuna and former chairman of the BCCI’s junior selection committee V. Chamundeswarnath have formed a consortium and bought Mumbai Masters — the Indian Badminton League’s Mumbai franchise.
Chamundeswarnath and Nagarjuna have ploughed in the money and Gavaskar holds equity. “He is the brand ambassador of the franchise and also a partner,” Chamundeswar-nath, who is president of the Hyderabad District Badminton Association, told this newspaper on Wednesday.
Nagarjuna already co-owns the Superbike Mahi Racing Team with cricket captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni.
The team is gearing up for the auction to be held on July 22 in Delhi where each franchisee will have a `1.5 crore cap to purchase 11 players that make up the squad. The icon players have been placed at a base price of $25,000.
Meanwhile, the Pune franchise has been bought by the Burman family, promoters of the Dabur group. Named Pune Pistons, the franchise is one of six in the $1-million league which will get underway on August 14.
“We are elated to contribute towards the rise of IBL. The conceptualisation and design of this league is really interesting and we are thrilled to be a part of it,” Dabur group director Mohit Burman said on Wednesday.