GMR group, co-owner of Delhi Capitals in the Indian Premier League, made history with its 49% acquisition of Hampshire County Cricket Club for a whopping INR 1200 crore. As per the deal, the franchise will have the option to own a majority stake of 51% in the future. Meanwhile, the groundbreaking deal is also the first agreement between an English county side with an overseas investor.
The new partnership has multiple perks as the GMR group will now have control over the Utilita Bowl, the Hilton hotel, and the 18-hole golf course adjacent to the cricket ground.
Earlier in the year, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) called out overseas investors to own a stake at The Hundred. Soon after that, 18 counties were approached to proceed with privatization but so far, only Hampshire has been able to ink a deal. Other IPL franchises such as Mumbai Indians, Kolkata Knight Riders, Lucknow Super Giants and Rajasthan Royals are in talks with other counties but haven’t struck a deal so far.
“There is going to be a lot of interest from IPL franchises because they have the money and this is a golden opportunity for the ECB to achieve the long desired financial stability,” a source tracking the development told The Times of India.
Change in The Hundred format?
The ECB officials have already held talks about a change in the format of The Hundred. The 100-ball matches haven’t worked in its history of four years and keeping that in mind, ECB is open to shaking things up. They are unlikely to change the branding part of the competition but it can be converted into T20 matches going forward.
Even though the ECB is still contemplating the idea but with more IPL franchises interested in owning The Hundred teams, things can eventually change in the future. After the deal between GMR group and Hampshire, other investors would also accelerate their discussions and a conclusion can be reached sooner as the ECB is eager to privatize The Hundred.
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