‘Steel’ OF A DEAL
By T&T Express)
Bollywood royalty is now set to rub shoulders with Hollywood glamour, following the purchase of the Trinidad and Tobago-based Red Steel franchise in the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) by star actor and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) owner Shah Rukh Khan.
Hollywood stars Mark Wahlberg and Gerard Butler already own CPL franchises. Wahlberg owns reigning champions Barbados Tridents, led by Kieron Pollard, while Butler owns Jamaica Tallawahs, captained by Chris Gayle.
Khan’s company Red Chillies Entertainment Pvt Ltd —along with KKR co-owners Juhi Chawla and her husband Jay Mehta --has invested in the T&T franchise. The next edition of the tournament is scheduled to run from next Saturday to July 26.
Khan is the first owner of an Indian Premier League (IPL) team to own an overseas cricket franchise. He told TOI: “This is in line with our vision to expand globally . We are thrilled to become part of the cricketing tradition of Trinidad and Tobago.”
“The passion for franchise cricket in the Caribbean is evident with the success of CPL and we hope to bring all the best practices of KKR to the T&T franchise,” Khan told TOI on Tuesday.
KKR, IPL champions in 2012 and 2014, have been ranked the most valuable IPL team with a brand value of US$86 million (over Rs 500 crore).
KKR’s chief executive Venky Mysore, who runs Khan’s sports business, added, “KKR has been fortunate to be recognised as one of the most professionally managed franchises in IPL. That experience has encouraged us to expand globally. The idea is to replicate
our success in the CPL, keeping the growing interest in this (T20) format in mind.”
KKR’s investment strategists are hoping that their star owner will draw in the crowds when the team plays its home matches at the historic Queen’s Park Oval between July 14 and 19. If Khan’s attempt to tap the Indian expat audience turns out to be successul, “the game will move entirely to a new level,” said Mysore.
T&T’s stars include Dwayne Bravo (who was the highest wicket-taker in this year’s IPL, playing for Chennai Super Kings), Darren Bravo, Samuel Badree and Kevon Cooper. Overseas signings include Kamran Akmal and Johan Botha. Former South Africa and KKR allrounder Jacques Kallis, who is now the IPL team’s mentor, will also be a part of the T&T franchise this year.
Star players in the T&T franchise: Dwayne Bravo, Jacques Kallis, Darren Bravo, Johan Botha, Kamran Akmal and Kevon Cooper among others.
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Shah Rukh Khan buys stake in T&T Red Steel
By The Multimedia Desk
The owners of IPL side Kolkata Knight Riders have bought a stake in Caribbean Premier League franchise Trinidad & Tobago Red Steel. It is the first instance of an IPL franchise investing in an overseas Twenty20 league.
This is in line with our vision to expand globally. We are thrilled to become part of the cricketing tradition of Trinidad & Tobago,? Shah Rukh Khan, co-owner of Knight Riders, told the Times of India. ?The passion for franchise cricket in the Caribbean is evident with the success of CPL and we hope to bring all the best practices of KKR to the T&T franchise.?
KKR's announcement coincided with Hero Motors, an Indian company, being unveiled as the tournament's title sponsors for 2015. Hero had been presenting sponsors in 2014 for two of the six CPL teams, champions Barbados Tridents and St Lucia Zouks.
Red Chillies Entertainment, the parent company of KKR, has been able to encash on the mass following of two of their co-owners. Khan and Juhi Chawla are popular Hindi film actors and their presence had helped Knight Riders become one of the first IPL franchises to break even.
Indian diaspora being the dominant ethnicity in Trinidad & Tobago, Red Steel was an appealing choice for the Red Chillies management.
Venky Mysore, chief executive officer of Red Chillies, hoped that the two-time IPL champions Knight Riders' success would be duplicated in the CPL. ?KKR has been fortunate to be recognized as one of the most professionally managed franchises in IPL,? Mysore said. ?That experience has encouraged us to expand globally .The idea is to replicate our success in the CPL, keeping the growing interest in this [T20] format in mind.?
Caribbean cricketers have emerged as the most sought-after overseas lot in the IPL. Offspinner Sunil Narine and allrounder Andre Russell are key players for Knight Riders. The CPL was launched in 2013 with six franchises. Red Steel, lead by Dwayne Bravo, couldn't make it to the final in the first two editions of the tournament.
