When he became the youngest owner of an IPL team two years ago, then 23-year-old Keshav Bansal was only looking to promote his family business and brand of Intex across the country. That mission accomplished, the owner of Gujarat Lions is now determined to expand his horizons.
“When we bought the franchise, we knew it was for a two-year period, so we were aware of the time we had. At a much lesser cost than what others spent, we got to know about the working of cricket, IPL, the functioning of the league, the benefits and losses etc. From our side, the intention is definitely there to continue,” he told The Hindu here.
Aware of the ongoing churning in Indian cricket administration Bansal, however, was willing to wait and watch before taking any decision. “Right now there is a lot going on. There’s the BCCI, the IPL governing committee, the COA — a lot of bodies are involved — in the next 3-4 months, hopefully a new Board would be in place and there will be more clarity. But we are also looking at other sports.”
Asked whether there was anything specific the company was looking at, Bansal was non-committal. “Talks are on. As a group, we have taken a conscious decision to diversify into new sporting leagues. We have been analysing prospects in kabaddi and football, the options are open for others as well but right now, the IPL is so big, all our energies are focused on this,” he said.
Admitting that the success of IPL was as much a product of its entertainment factor as the actual game, Bansal though was quick to insist that there was no lack of seriousness in terms of the cricket being played. “That’s why it is called ‘cricketainment’. But in terms of cricket, all the top players are here, there have been close contests and content wise, it is serious hard work. We have had some very good cricket this year as well. But yes, people do come to enjoy themselves,” he said.
There have been rumours of the teams either buying out or picking up stakes in previously existing franchises and even talks of the IPL expanding to 10 teams, but Bansal conceded it might not be feasible. “The possibility (of buying stake) is definitely there. But (expanding) will be problem.
“There are so many boards involved, you need a bigger window, there is other domestic cricket being played in India also — the BCCI has to think about all this. There is also the financial aspect. Before deciding on how to hold a larger league, it needs to first decide whether it wants to,” Bansal admitted.
