Ganguly again the darling of corporate world

KOLKATA: Only months back, almost nobody expected Sourav Ganguly to make the fairy-tale comeback to big time cricket as he did, least of all the corporates.

But now, with Ganguly having returned to the Indian team with a bang and the World Cup a fortnight away, corporate India is going ga ga over the former national skipper.

The left-hander landed two lucrative deals in the last three days, which seemed a far cry from the scene six months back, when even Videocon the sponsor of his cricket academy here looked like giving out discordant signals about the extent of their financial commitment.

Ganguly's visibility in television ads during the 10 months he was out of the Indian team had virtually been limited to endorsing POGO.

Later on, a commercial for soft drink giant Pepsi seemed to be built around the former skipper's fallen status. The image of a forlorn Ganguly, hoping people had not forgotten him, and expressing his resolve to come back into the Indian team, almost seemed the stuff of some soap opera.

However, with the talismanic player's willow again doing the talking ever since his return to national duty on South African soil at Potchefstroom, relationship between the electronics giant and the academy has become as smooth as silk.

"There is no misunderstanding between us now. We are very happy with the company's role," said a spokesman of the academy situated at the posh satellite township Salt Lake.

For Ganguly's agent Percept d' Mark, it's a windfall of sorts.