AMIT PDPL T20 TOURNAMENT INAUGURATED AMIDST GREAT CHEER
· Ajay Shirke commends the efforts of PDCA & PDPL in promoting grassroot level cricket
The Glorious opening ceremony of the prestigious AMIT PDPL T20 tournament took place on 20th November 2009 at 12.15pm at Deccan Gymkhana Ground, amidst much fanfare and cheer.
The grand inauguration took place at the auspicious hands of Kishore Pate (Wani), CMD, Amit Enterprises Housing Ltd. in the presence of Guests of Honour, Ajay Shirke, President, Maharashtra Cricket Association and Sujit Jain, MD, Netsurf.
Present at the ceremony were Ramesh Bondre, Chairman, PDCA, Ashish Desai, Secreatry, PDPL, the four of the six team owners – Atul Goel (Camp Warriors), Rohan Pate (Parvati Peshwas), Yogesh Jagtap (Baramati Powers), Vinit Goel (Pimpri Panthers). Also present at the ceremony were Sanjay Kakade, Deepak Shah, Atul Lunkad, Sanjay Kelkar, etc.
Speaking at the inauguration, Ajay Shirke commended the efforts of the PDCA & PDPL in uplifting taluka level cricket. “All players, participants, sponsors will enjoy the event and it will be a grand success. I am always for the betterment of cricket. Let’s get on with the game”, he said.
The eagerly awaited exciting tournament commenced today, between Parvati Peshwas & Pimpri Panthers, at Deccan Gymkhana. Simultaneously, Ambegaon Tigers & Chakan Royals played at Manchar.
Pimpri Panthers roped in Yogesh Takawale, the right-hand wicket-keeper batsman, who played for the Mumbai Indians team in IPL II, to play in their team, which is a coup!
“Seven matches have been organised at Manchar to boost taluka cricket. Five players in each team have been selected from the talukas, compulsorily, so that they get an opportunity to play with the city boys”, explains Ramesh Bondre.
Cash prizes to be won would be worth Rs.6.5 lakhs, with a prize of Rs.3 lakhs to the winning team, besides other attractive prizes, including creatively designed trophies, are in the offing.
Man of the series WILL BE AWARDED WITH A HONDA MOTORCYCLE.
PDPL like the original IPL is meant to be a win-win situation for everyone involved, whether it’s the players, the clubs who are participating or the business houses. The idea is to grow it year after year, for five years, so that the franchisee who has bought a team today, owns an asset with significant growth potential and can benefit from substantial revenues from various sources as the league develops. The franchisee can give out a part of, or full stake in his team, later, at a much higher price. The revenue sharing model of PDPL is quite unique in a sense that the existing franchise gets some share of additional revenue generated from addition of the franchisee. This model also offers share of revenue out of sponsorship to the franchisee after fifth year onwards.
“The franchisees have an outstanding revenue sharing model outlined, as the tournament grows big and new owners are added at a higher cost. 30% of the revenue, in excess of Rs.5 lakhs will be divided amongst the franchisees”, explains Ashish Desai, Secreatry, PDPL.
The entire initiative of this tournament is not only to promote grass root level cricket but also to contribute towards the society for a social cause. PDPL would be a platform to spread awareness about AIDS as is being done by ICC (International Cricket Council). This would be achieved by conducting on ground AIDS awareness campaigns, in tribal and rural areas, where celebrities would be involved. The programs will be conducted by TAAL famous NGO working for HIV and our CSR partner. That’s not all – in addition, vaccination would also be provided free of cost to the rural children.
Official Website : pdplt20.com
