Mumbai, Nov 2: It certainly could not have come at a worse time. With the Central Bureau of Investigation indicting major Indian players on match-fixing charges and the recent drubbing at Sharjah, Indian cricket aficionados seem a disillusioned lot. But as any Dickens' fan would argue - with the winter of despair, there is the summer of hope. Thus with the infusion of talent in the form of Zaheer Khan and Yuvraj Singh, and now the Indian team captain Sourav Ganguly being crowned the Ceat International Cricketer of the Year, India can look forward to a prospective future.Launched in 1995-96, the Ceat Cricket Ratings has entered its 5th year. The rating system has been extended to cover the best team of the year from 1996-97. Australia is the recipient for the current year as the best team.
It is not just for the cricket lovers that the Ceat Ratings is an event much awaited, the tyre major has gained immense brand equity through this initiative.
Says Ceat Ltd managing director S Samuel: "The Ceat ratings has certainly made a difference to the Ceat brand value." Consider this: Over the last 4 years, Ceat has spent nearly Rs 10 crore on its cricket related campaigns.
However, as Mr Samuel states categorically: "We are not planning any celebrity brand endorsements. We have never done it." According to Ceat Ltd executive director (marketing) Shashi Mudgal, Ceat is best known for its distinctive "Galloping Rhinoceros" mascot which signifies the base line "born tough" for its tyres.
"The Ceat personality is thus best encapsulated by the dynamicity and positivity that the "born tough" image potrays," says Mr Mudgal. Ceat is planning to make available its rating facility to the public through the Ceat Shoppes. This covers 97 retail shoppes throughout the country out of which 68 have shifted to the new look.
The RPG group is also planning a cricket portal which will include a provision of "fantasy cricket", whereby cricket enthusiasts can form their own teams and assign ratings.
Ceat is, however, not planning any other major forays in sports promotion, though it co-sponsored the Gold Flake Open tennis tournament last year. The formal awards for the Best Cricketer of the year and the Best Team of the Year will be given away on Friday in Mumbai. The award for the best cricketer carries a cash award of Rs 5 lakh and a specially sculpted trophy.
The best team will receive Rs 10 lakh along with a trophy. Further, the event is also being used as an opportunity by the company to reward its top dealers. Ceat has invited its top 46 dealers - delivering more than Rs 3 crore of sales per annum on a growth rate of 15 per cent - for the occasion from its all-India network of 3,500 dealers.
Copyright © 2000 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.