On Monday, Yoga guru Baba Ramdev clarifies that the Patanjali Ayurvedic Ltd will only bid for the IPL 2020 titles sponsorship if no Indian company bid for it. Patanjali has submitted their Expression of Interest (EOI) for IPL 2020 titles sponsorship.
According to the reports, apart from Patanjali, five other companies Tata Group, Reliance Jio, Dream11, Byjus and Unacademy have submitted their Expression of Interest.
“It is too early to talk about it as Patanjali will only come to the forefront (for IPL title sponsorship) if other Indian corporate houses don’t make any bid for the IPL title sponsorship,” Ramdev said to Hindustan Times.
“Patanjali will only make bid when no other Indian company comes out or is in the fray for IPL title sponsorship deal,” Ramdev said.
All the other fives companies are Indians companies, but Byjus and Dream11 have received funding from Chinese investors.
“There are many Indian firms, corporates and companies that have been investing, sponsoring and associated with international cricket and IPL. People do not want Chinese products or firms to be associated with cricket and other sports, which clearly indicates Indians being vocal for local,” he said.
“After Doklam, India-China relations have soured and Indians have realised the nefarious designs of China, so it is imperative we opt for localised indigenous products only,” said Ramdev.
Of the six companies, Tata is leading the race and according to market experts, Byjus and Jio will not bid aggressively due to association with different franchises.
