Rajasthan Royals have got into a deal with three or four other domestic sides around the world to promote the Royals brand. Rajasthan Royals joined hands with the Hampshire side from England, Cape Cobras from South Africa and Trinidad and Tobago from the West Indies to form a Royals brand which will play T20 tournaments around the year.
There have also been talks with Victorian Bushrangers to get into the deal as well, to form five sides for the tournaments. Shane Warne, who has captained the Rajasthan Royals in the IPL and the Hampshire side in the English domestic season, was present at the launch of the event along with the co-owner of the Royals; Manoj Badale. There were also officials of the Hampshire, Cobras and T&T side present at the occasion.
All the teams will now be called the Royals. For example, Hampshire Hawks will be the Hampshire Royals and so on. Worcestershire is already called Royals in the English T20 circuit, and the brand may be bought over.
The concept is obviously in its nascent stage, but there is obvious excitement in the air as the first international domestic tournament after the Champions League T20 will be soon in place. However, Badale has said that the motive is to ultimately roll out the brand to other existing Twenty20 markets in New Zealand, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.
An excited Shane Warne said, “I’m so excited by this. It would be nice to be 20 years younger. I am delighted to be part of this new innovation, and I am excited by what we can achieve, given what we have already achieved. Yet again, the Royals are leading the way. It is bonus that clubs with which I have such deep affection are so involved.”
The CEO of Rajasthan Royals did accept that there were problems at the international level with respect to player burnout, but everyone wants to play more of T20 cricket and hence it was necessary to take that step forward. He added, “The opportunity to be part of a global brand is a unique one across all sports. And it will enable us to take advantage of the changing landscape in cricket, not least in the areas of marketing and talent development.”
