MUMBAI: It is advantage Sahara as Indian cricket's sponsorship deal comes up for renewal. The current sponsor of Indian cricket team is expected to bid for the rights and wouldn't mind even shelling out some extra bucks to secure the property.

A PTI report has quoted Communication director Abhijit Sarkar as saying that the company is keen to extend the existing association. The new deal could be worth anything between Rs 2 billion and Rs 3 billion for three to five years. The previous deal was worth Rs 1 billion for three years.

As far as the final verdict is concerned, Sahara is in a strong position since the Board has acknowledged that the former reserves the first right of refusal.

 
 
The present contract between the Indian Cricket Board and Sahara expires on 30 November. Interestingly, BCCI hasn't either floated tenders or invited bids for the sponsorship deal. A board official has been quoted in the report as ensuring that the process of inviting bids would start in a few days.

 
As per the eligibility criterion, the bidder must be a Rs 5 billion asset company and should not be engaged in liquor or cigarette businesses. Reportedly, Sahara might face competition in the bidding from a mobile network and a major bike and consumer product company.