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Flavour of Kerala

Vivek Venugopal, co-owner of Rendezvous Sports World Ltd, spoke to Khaleej Times about how this would help promote cricket in Kerala and unite the people of the state.

Interview

How exciting is it to bag an IPL team?

It’s a great feeling. I’m really excited about bringing IPL to Kerala. This is part of the job done, now this is a team of Malayalees and the real success is to connect this team with the community in Kerala.

How big an achievement is it for Kerala?

I think it’s a really big achievement. If you look at the past, Kerala’s contribution to national cricket has been minimal in terms of the talents that the state has provided to the national squads. We have only had Tinu Yohannan and Sreesanth who are completely homegrown lads and have played for India. If you go to any town in Kerala, there are so many cricket clubs and associations that are very active and there’s lot of talent but till now they haven’t had the opportunity to showcase it. Hopefully, with this IPL team, they can do that. This could be a stepping stone for them to enter the national squad some day.

Sreesanth has expressed his desire to play for this team, how does it feel?

Sreesanth is a great player. He has done well for India. But before taking the players in we have to think about their current commitments and existing contracts. Even the new rules for the bidding for players that comes up in August-Septemeber is not fully finalised yet. So, once we get more clarity on these, we will work it out accordingly. We are looking forward to having as many Malayalee players as possible to come back to Kerala and play for the state. We will also find a lot of grassroot level players, pick them up and encourage them by giving them the necessary training to play at the highest level.

Who would be your dream captain for the team?

We will definitely have a good captain but the question is again we need to think about which players are free and who all are interested in playing for our team. We also have to look at their national commitments. Many are playing for IPL already but a lot will depend on how these new rules come up.

How have you planned the promotions and campaigns?

It’s in the pipeline. Firstly, we have to sort out the administrative work. After that, we will get into the main branding exercise. It might take a little long but fortunately, we have enough time unlike during the first IPL where they had only 90 days to plan before the start of the event. Here we have the luxury of time. If you look at it, some of the IPL teams had changed the logos but we want to do it perfectly the first time.

Will the colour of the team uniform have the essence of Kerala?

We do want to keep the essence of Kerala, definitely. We will figure out the ideal colour that captures the essence of Kerala. We are open to suggestions and will look at all possibilities to decide what will suit best, keeping the culture and heritage in mind.

How about roping in top actors as brand ambassadors?

Firstly, I don’t think we need any actors as brand ambassadors. We being Malayalees take pride in the fact that we are global citizens and we ourselves are brand amassadors. We love the team and we will surely come to watch them in the stadium.

What about preparing the stadiums in Kerala?

Actually we are having continuous discussions on this issue. We will come up with good solutions. The priority would be to play in Kerala but we have to look into other issues like facilities at the stadium. We hope to play in Kerala in the first season itself but it might get pushed into the second season. We are forming a committee that will monitor the stadium and see the best way we can work together. The most important thing is that everybody has been very supportive. The KCA (Kerala Cricket Association) has been very encouraging and the sports minister has been extremely supportive. We believe this team has got everybody together and that’s the whole essence.

Any plans of having promotional events in Dubai (Gulf)?

This is a team which will be really liked and is the team for Malayalees irrespective of where they reside. The Malayalees in the Gulf have played a major role in developing the Kerala economy. We are very keen to ensure that this team is accepted by Malayalees all over the world. We believe that they will have a good team that they can associate themselves with and they can feel proud of. We have lot of things lined up for the Malayalees in the Gulf and that should make them accept it as their own team. We want to create a huge fan base there.

But is IPL becoming more business venture rather than promoting sports?

Any business has to be self sustainable. It shouldn’t be like every year we have to pump money into it. Every business entity, even if it’s charitable institute, has to be self sustainable. In that sense, this will be a very successful venture. Definitely, it is going to draw huge amount of attention. With Kerala coming in on the map of cricket, it’s just the start. Once that happens, other sports will also benefit. Our main focus will be cricket but at the same time we want to make sure that we do our part in promoting other sports.

How rapid has the growth of IPL been?

All statistics compiled related to IPL reveal that it has been growing at a very fast pace. New ideas and innovative methods have helped the franchisees promote their teams. There are lot of activities happening. IPL is going to be a perfect entertainment package for every household and youth. This will also promote talent in Kerala like never before.

Which team is your favourite to win the title this year?

Mumbai Indians are looking very strong. Sachin Tendulkar has been in brilliant form. But I also think Bangalore is doing very well. It should be one of them.

jaiprasad@khaleejtimes.com