New Delhi: Ratan Tata passed away at the age of 86 on Wednesday night (October 9). He was in intensive care at Mumbai Hospital for the past few days. Renowned for his remarkable achievements as a businessman, Ratan Tata also played a crucial role in shaping the future of Indian sports.
The Tata Group’s connection with Indian sports is deeply rooted in its history. From 1991, Ratan Tata spearheaded many sports initiatives including the establishment of academies for athletics, Hockey and archery. The company also owns Jamshedpur Football Club (JFC) in the Indian Super League (ISL). The club has a commitment to grassroots and youth development programs, including training centres, football schools and tournaments.
Platform for budding cricketers
Tata Group also provided a platform for many budding cricketers to help them excel in their careers. Former India cricketer Farokh Engineer was supported by Tata Motors while Sanjay Manjrekar, Mohinder Amarnath, VVS Laxman and Robin Uthappa were supported by Air India (a company owned by Tata Group).
Another Indian airline linked with Tata Group offered a platform to Javagal Srinath, Harbhajan Singh, Yuvraj Singh and Mohammed Kaif. The company also played an important role in the sporting journey of current cricket stars like Jayant Yadav and Shardul Thakur.
The Titan Cup sponsorship
The Tata Group sponsored the 1996 Titan Cup which featured India, Australia and South Africa in the triangular one-day tournament. It was a big success for the country as Team India defeated South Africa in the final by 35 runs.
But the Tata Group, under the guidance of Ratan Tata, withdrew its sponsorship after several big players were involved in the match-fixing scandal in 2000.
IPL sponsorship in difficult times
The Tata Group also offered help to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) in a tough time when Chinese phone manufacturer Vivo, withdrew its sponsorship from the Indian Premier League (IPL) in 2020 due to the border tensions between India and China.
Tata’s support to the biggest T20 league in world cricket grew with each passing year. Ahead of the 2024 season, Tata Group secured a record-breaking four-year deal with IPL worth INR 2,500 crore, the highest sponsorship amount in the league’s history.
After the huge success of the IPL, the BCCI launched the Women’s Premier League (WPL) in 2023 and Tata secured the title sponsorship of the tournament until 2027.
Renowned for his remarkable achievements as a businessman, Ratan Tata also played a crucial role in shaping the future of Indian sports. Sports Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
