gifts and prises

Real estate firm Amrapali on Tuesday said it will gift villas worth a total of Rs 9 crore to the entire World Cup winning Indian cricket team at its township in Noida extension.

Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni is at present the brand ambassador of Amrapali.
"Dhoni was presented with an exotic grand villa covering 2,900 sq ft worth Rs 1 crore, while other team members were gifted villas worth Rs 55 lakh each, covering an area of 1,690 sq ft," Amrapali Chairman and Managing Director Anil Kumar Sharma told reporters here.


The company will offer the villas at its luxury township -- Amrapali Dream Valley Project -- at Noida extension, he added.


When asked if there is a possibility of renegotiation of Dhoni's endorsement fees due to his increased brand equity, Sharma said: "He is a very generous person, he is not business-minded. Whatever previous commitment he has, will not change. So we will not have any impact because of increase in his brand value."

Chennai Super Kings (CSK) captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who is the highest earning cricketer in the world, is the most heavily insured player for the forthcoming Indian Premier League (IPL) 4 T-20 tournament which begins on April 8. An insurance firm official confirmed that the Indian captain, who led CSK to victory in IPL 3, has been insured for Rs 34 crore by the Oriental Insurance Company (OIC)—a rise of Rs 24 crore over his insurance cover for IPL 3. CSK has paid a premium of Rs 16 lakh, which includes travel risk cover, including medical emergencies, personal accident and loss of baggage.

   
Suresh Raina, retained by CSK, will get an insurance cover of Rs 20.5 crore. Incidentally, little master Sachin Tendulkar, who will play for Mukesh Ambani's Mumbai Indians for the fourth consecutive season, has an insurance cover of only Rs 12 crore.
     
Mahela Jayawardene, the skipper of Kochi Tuskers Kerala, has been insured for Rs 20.5 crore. "He seems to be most highly insured overseas player for the tournament," said a source. adding, "Speedster Dale Steyn from South Africa, who will be playing for Deccan Chargers, has been insured for Rs 16 crore."
    One of the rules of IPL is that even if the player is benched due to a disability, he has to be paid his dues by the franchisee. The cover is being taken by the franchisee to cover his or her financial interest. Many owners are still in the process of finalizing the cover for their team.

Indian team (128 points) has been sitting on top of the Test Championship table since December 2009. South Africa (127 points) will pocket USD 75,000 for ending in second position in the Test Championship table at the cut-off date of April 1.