MUMBAI: Sahara Group-owned IPL team Pune Warriors India Thursday announced former Indian captain Sourav Ganguly as the captain of the team for season 5 of the IPL to be played from 4 April to 27 May.

The franchise also announced that Pune Warriors India team will don new turquoise blue and silver coloru jerseys. Turquoise blue colour stands for zeal, confidence and victory, the very attributes and motto of a Warrior, PWI said.

Sahara Group chairman Subrata Roy said, ?We are extremely proud that the legendary all-rounder and one of the most successful captain of the Indian Cricket Team, Sourav Ganguly, is the Captain and Mentor of Pune Warriors India in this season of IPL. I am sure that his experience, expertise and deep understanding of the nuances of the game will definitely infuse an exemplary spirit of passion and commitment amongst the members of the team.?

The Pune Warriors India?s bowling coach is Allan Donald while Praveen Amre is the batting coach. Paddy Upton is the mental conditioning and high performance coach of the team.

MUMBAI: In a major setback for former IPL chairman Lalit Modi, a London court has declared him bankrupt over unpaid bills of 65,000 pounds (approximately Rs. 5.3 million) owed to private security firm, Page Group, through an order it passed last month.

The international securities and risk assessment company has claimed that Modi owes fees for security services it provided to him and his family in 2010.

Stuart Page, the company?s chairman, said: "It?s unfortunate that we have come to this situation but Modi has given us no other option. We gave Modi a number of security services in relation to threats made against him and his family. We submitted a number of invoices which were not paid. Our attempts to reach a settlement with Modi were to no avail and we were forced to take the action we have taken."

Modi in his defence said, "Until the order was served, I was completely unaware of any outstanding monies. I have not seen any previous demands but since it came to my attention, I?ve even offered to lodge the sum being claimed with the court pending clarity. But for some reason, that was refused, by the company concerned."

The former IPL chairman, though, feels that it is an attempt to gain cheap publicity by the securities firm. "It is a ridiculous waste of everyone?s time and I can only assume it is being done in an attempt to gain some sort of publicity at my expense. Any suggestion that this order means I am unable to pay is equally ridiculous," Modi said.

A hearing will be held in London shortly when Modi will attempt to have the order set aside.

MUMBAI: India Cements-owned IPL franchise Chennai Super Kings has earned a revenue of Rs 1.4 billion in the previous edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) and is targeting a 15-20 per cent growth from season 5 of the cash rich league.

According to India Cements Joint President marketing Rakesh Singh, the franchise had clocked revenues of Rs 1.4 billion from sponsorship, ticketing and share of central revenue pool comprising ground sponsorship and broadcast rights.

The team has long-term deals with telco Aircel and lubricants brand Gulf Oil, two of its main sponsors, while Amrapali Group, Reebok, Pepsi, Coromandel King, Hercules, Mansion House, and The Hindu are other sponsors on board.

Speaking to official CSK website, Team owner Gurunath Meiyappan said the team has been getting encouraging response from sponsors due to its on-field performance.

?We are proud that most of our sponsors have been with us for almost all seasons. We are very happy that we are the only team whose principal sponsor, Aircel, has been constant from Season 1 of the Championship,? he said.

?Aircel, Gulf Oil, Life OK, Amrapalli, Washington Apple, TI Cycles, Mansion House, Universal and Reebok are our other sponsors. We also have tie-ups and associations with The Hindu, Caf? Coffee day and Hello FM. Our sponsorship rates have always increased year on year reflecting the success the team has been getting on-field.?

Some of the recent sponsors to come on board are Life OK channel and Washington Apples as the official fruit partner of the team.

However, it?s not just the sponsorship revenue that the franchise is banking on; it is also looking at merchandising, a revenue stream which has largely remained untapped unlike the West where it is a major revenue contributor for major clubs.

CSK plans to launch an entire range of apparel at various price points across 380 outlets in Tamil Nadu and is also opening a store at the Chennai airport soon. Additionally, all Reebok outlets will also be selling its merchandise.

Talking about the franchises marketing plans, Meiyappan said that the franchise began its marketing activities since January starting with the ?Yellow Card? membership. It is currently running a ?Name your Mascot? contest that has seen a huge number of entries.

?We began a focused drive to engage with our fans on Social Media platforms and that has given us stunning success. Our Facebook membership has crossed 1 million currently and we are hoping to make it 2 million by mid-season of IPL 5,? Meiyappan said.

He also revealed that the online ticket sales will begin 18 March.

As far as merchandise is concerned, the franchises is taking the first steps to move from being a sports based to a Lifestyle brand and is focusing on its signature team colour yellow as a first step. The franchise had earned Rs 35 million from merchandise last year.

?Based on wholesale prices, last season Reebok sold Rs 2.5 crores (Rs 25 million) of merchandise and Cool Maal, our official merchandise partner, sold Rs. 1 crore (Rs 10 million) worth of merchandise,? Meiyappan added.

MUMBAI: Gerald Majola, the beleaguered chief executive of Cricket South Africa, has been sacked on account of damning indictment in the 2009 IPL bonus controversy.

The committee investigating the bonus payments ruled that Majola had violated the Companies Act and recommended that the case be referred to the National Prosecuting Authority.

CSA also rescinded the decisions of an internal inquiry that cleared Majola but was then criticised by the committee for not being neutral and possibly trying to cover up Majola?s actions.

CSA?s board also decided to appoint Dr Willie Basson as acting president of the organisation until the annual general meeting in September 2012 together with a request to provincial franchisee North West to second its CEO, Jacques Faul, to act as the head of CSA until the matter was resolved.

Basson is a highly experienced cricket administrator and is currently chairman of the CSA Transformation Committee.

Earlier, CSA?s woes had further accentuated with acting president AK Khan, the man who led the much?criticised internal inquiry, and Audit and Risk Committee chairman John Blair handing out their resignation from the organisation. CSA?s Brand and Corporate Relations Manager Kass Naidoo had also tendered resignation.

Khan was first appointed acting president from 12 February to 4 May 2011, and then again from 15 October 2011, up until the current date. He made his announcement at CSA?s Manco meeting and the decision has also been conveyed to the Board of Directors.

MUMBAI: Sportspersons including those from abroad taking part in leagues like World Series Hockey (WSH) and the IPL will have to pay service tax.

The government is going to levy a 12 per cent service tax on all domestic and foreign players participating in the IPL or other sports event, which are not the recognised format of the game.

The budget proposal for 2012-13 reads: "Income arising to a non-citizen, non-resident entertainer (such as theatre, radio or television artists and musicians) from performance in India shall be taxable at the rate of 20 per cent of gross receipts."