India World Cup 2011 Squad Announced by BCCI

BCCI all India seniors selection committee has released the 15 member squad for ICC World Cup 2011 beginning from 19th Feb 2011.

Sachin Tendulkar has pulled out from the remain matches in the ODI series against South Africa but placed in the world cup 2011.  But going by indications, the injury is not serious and Tendulkar will be making his sixth World Cup appearance.

The India’s squad is

M.S.  Dhoni Captain, Virendra Sehwag vice Captain. Sachin Tendulkar, Gautam Gambhir, Virat Kohli, Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina, Harbhajan Singh, Jahir Khan, Munaf Patel, Praveen Kumar, Ashish Nehra, R. Ashwin, Yusuf Pathan and Piyush Chawla.

Injury may sideline Hussey for World Cup

Australia batsman Mike Hussey faces a battle to be fit for the start of next month's World Cup after suffering a "significant" hamstring injury during Sunday's ODI against England, Cricket Australia said on Monday. Hussey sustained the injury during his 21 run knock in Australia's successful runchase against endland"Scans have confirmed that Mike Hussey sustained a significant left hamstring injury during the first ODI against England at the MCG," Australian physiotherapist Alex Kountouris said in a statement. "The course of management for this injury will be determined in the next 24 hours."

World champions Australia are scheduled to name their final 15 member squad for the Feb 19-April 2 World Cup on Tuesday.

ICC proposal for day-night Test matches gathers strength

Day-night Test matches moved a step closer to acceptance after cricket's governing body endorsed a trial first class match in Pakistan held under lights with a coloured ball. "I don't see any problems with the behaviour of the ball or playing under lights. This match would help us in our proposal.Richardson watched some of the five-day Quaid-e-Azam trophy final at the National stadium between the country's two top teams.

The match was played under floodlights in a bid to attract crowds and raise the profile of Pakistan's domestic cricket.

A pink ball has been used in trials in England, Australia and West Indies which would enable players to wear white clothing under floodlit conditions with white sightscreens.

The traditional red ball is difficult to see properly under lights. White balls are used successfully in day-night one-day matches but the players wear coloured clothing and black sightscreens are employed.

"The good thing is that this final has shown that it is possible to play first class and test matches in a day-night format with orange color balls," former captain and Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) director-general of cricket Javed Miandad told reporters at the national stadium.

"But as far as the International Cricket Council is concerned it is up to them how they approach this new concept which can be done.

Miandad said that the PCB would send its report to the ICC after going through the reports of the captains and match officials.

"The good thing is that on all five days we got no complaints from anyone about playing in this format being difficult," he said.

Pepsico launches six new Lay's flavours for the ICC World Cup

In a bid to cash in on the Cricket World Cup, global soft drink and snacks major PepsiCo today unveiled six new flavours of its Lay's potato chips, inspired by the top teams participating in the tournament.

"We are the global snacks partner with the ICC World Cup in 2011. That's why we are building on this relationship. As a global snacks partner, we are leveraging the association to give consumer experiences and build our brand image," Pepsico Foods India Marketing Director Vidur Vyas told reporters. 

The six new flavours are named after India, Sri Lanka, West Indies, Australia, England and South Africa. 

These snacks will also be available in the other two host countries -- Sri Lanka and Bangladesh -- as well. 

India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh are the co-hosts of the tournament, which is being held from February 19 to April 2. 

Vyas said the flavours might remain in the market after the tournament, depending on consumers' response. 

The company has also kicked off its World Cup advertising campaign, featuring Bollywood actor Saif Ali Khan and Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni . 

However, Vyas, declined to comment on the kind of investment or the marketing spend Pepsico has earmarked for the campaign.

Bang for buck: IPL vs World Cup

Every Indian marketer worth his dollar is gearing up to be a part of what is being touted as the biggest cricketing season of all time. In a month from now, an estimated Rs 1,500 crore of combined advertising funds will be pumped into the ICC World Cup starting February 19 and then into the Indian Premier League-4 (IPL) beginning April 8. Industry experts say this 90-day chock-a-block cricket calendar will, arguably, be the largest media extravaganza ever in terms of both viewership and revenue. What is interesting is that despite the overdose of cricket and the high cost associated with it, most advertisers are not deterred from shelling out the big bucks. In fact, they admit that cricket remains the best impact property in a fragmented media environment. However, they do not hesitate to spell out that cricket's escalating costs mean a more efficient marketing plan is the need of the hour to get the required bang for their buck. 

Mobile service provider, Reliance Communications (RCOM), which is an  ICC global partner, is firming up its on-air strategy for the World Cup and the IPL. It has earmarked upwards of Rs 50 crore as ad spends during the upcoming cricket season. "We have become smarter as marketers as compared to a few years back. Cricket's costs have gone up and, therefore, we have to make sure that we micro-manage our investments to get best returns," says Sanjay Behl, group head-brand & marketing, RCOM. Advertisers had suffered a setback with India's early exit in the World Cup 2007 in the Caribbean and had even asked for compensation for their losses from broadcaster Multi Screen Media (MSM), the official broadcaster of the tournament then. , which of course was not forthcoming. World Cup versus the IPL

In fact, such is the lesson learnt from the last edition of the World Cup that Korean consumer durable major LG Electronics has chosen not to be present on ESPN Star Sports (ESS), the official broadcaster of the 2011 edition of the World Cup despite being an ICC ground partner. "The commercial deal did not work out for us, therefore, we have opted out of being on air but our consumer engagement plans and product launches will be big around the event and we expect a spike of 50% in sales over the last quarter," says L K Gupta, marketing head, LG India. Gupta, however, expects an assured viewership on IPL , on the other hand and, therefore, will be seen advertising on SET Max, the official IPL broadcaster, during the tournament. "There are large outlays involved in such big cricketing properties and what IPL offers is a risk-free option unlike the World Cup," says Rohit Gupta, president, MSM. The IPL-4 will for the first time have 10 teams and as many as 74 matches. 

The change in strategy by Although marketers these days prefer over the years favours a the snappier Twenty20 format of the IPL, there remains a desire but has not completely taken away the sheen to be associated with the World Cup. Big spenders like cola major, PepsiCo has plans to create a buzz around the tournament despite the 2007 debacle. Having launched its campaign "Change the game" PepsiCo is looking to capture and celebrate the changes in cricket over the years with a 360 degree marketing activity. "We feel the World Cup is a tremendous opportunity for us to leverage in terms of our image as also our sales. The IPL, too, is a great platform but that does not take away anything from the efficiency of the World Cup," says Sandeep Singh Arora, executive VP- marketing, cola, PepsiCo India. 

The country's largest media agency, Group M, expects both the World Cup and the IPL to equally share the Rs 1,500 crore ad booty but the average viewership ratings are expected to be better for the IPL. While the World Cup is expected to clock an average of 3.5 rating, the IPL will register an average of 5, according to Group M. "Brands like PepsiCo and Hero Honda, which have traditionally been cricket-centric in their communication and positioning, will prefer being on the World Cup as it has involved viewership unlike an IPL which is like a hindi general entertainment channel," says R Gowthaman, head, Mindshare-South Asia. While ESS has signed on sponsors like PepsiCo, Hero Honda, Sony India, Nokia, SET Max has got on board Hyundai, Vodafone, Cadbury India besides seven other sponsors. 

This involvement and less clutter is what an advertiser like Philips is looking to cash in on. "We have been present in cricket for the last three years and got good returns. The World Cup is an ideal platform for us to reach our target audience. It is like a national event filled with passion and we expect to get undivided attention from viewers unlike the IPL which is excessively commercialised," says Vivek Sharma, CMO, Philips India. 

But a big dampener for the ICC property, say media experts, is the number of matches that does not involve India, which constitute about 80% of the tournament and of course, the fate of the Indian team. The broadcaster of the World Cup, ESS says the ICC has changed the format from the 2007 edition so as to secure at least a month-long presence of the India team. India plays its last group match only on March 20, a month from the start of the tournament. "Yes, there has been some devaluation of the 50-over game but the World Cup has a special impact and that is the response we have got from advertisers," says an official spokesman of ESS. 

The marketing game is not just limited to advertisements. So everything that touches a consumer's life directly like flat screen TVs, apparel and FMCG products would be hard sold on ground as well. It's only natural, therefore, that to capture this national fervour, marketers beyond just the ones associated with the event on air are making plans. Retail chain Big Bazaar, which is the official merchandiser for the World Cup, has launched a range of personal care products like toothpastes and soaps through its Sach brand-inspired by Sachin Tendulkar-to coincide with the tournament. Even multiplex chains are preparing to hop on to the cricket bandwagon. "We are trying to extend the buzz around cricket on to the cinema goers by introducing cricket fever combo wherein consumer can win world cup merchandise," says Archana Jhangiani, head brand & marketing, Big Cinema. 

It's just a matter of time before the consumer market explodes on the country's biggest religion backed by the marketers attempt to maximise their quest for the consumer's purse.