Team India now worth a billion dollars

CRICKET: Sponsorship and media rights around the Indian cricket team touched one billion dollars on Friday following a new five-year deal for one-day matches across the world.

Indian media firm Zee Telefilms agreed to pay 219 million dollars for 25 one-dayers over the next five years at venues in the United States, the United Arab Emirates, Canada, England, Singapore and Malaysia.

The ambitious plan of five matches a year features the Indian team against Pakistan, Australia, England and the West Indies and is in addition to the regular Test programme drawn up by the International Cricket Council (ICC).

Indian cricket board vice-president Lalit Modi, who announced the new deal, stressed it would not put additional burden on the already overworked cricketers.

"We have committed to the players they will not play more than 15 Tests and 30 one-dayers in a year as stipulated by the ICC," said Modi.

"We will only rework the schedule in a way that attracts maximum sponsorship. "The total value of sponsorship deals now stands at 1.052 billion dollars," said Modi.

The Indian deals are almost double the 550 million dollars the ICC got from the Global Cricket Corporation for sponsorship of two World Cups and three Champions Trophy tournaments between 2000 to 2007.

NEW DELHI, Friday AFP