Yuvraj, Dhoni hit sixers in ad world post T20 win

NEW DELHI: Twenty20 Cricket World Cup hero Yuvraj Singh is the highest earner among his teammates off the field with his endorsement value shooting over Rs 1 crore each and his fellow players' value will also go up after India's historic win, advertising professionals said on Tuesday.

Yuvraj, endorsing nine brands, including Hero Honda, Pepsi, Reebok and Donear, appears to be slightly ahead of his captain MS Dhoni, who endorses around a dozen brands such as Pepsi, Videocon, Exide and Reebok, among others, with an estimated value of Rs 1 crore per brand.

However, the trio of Indian cricket-- Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid-- are still ahead of Yuvraj and Dhoni in their endorsement values.

Industry pundits feel the T20 success has catapulted Dhoni's brand equity and already some new companies are trying to rope him in saying he along with Yuvraj would be in maximum demand.

Other players, who were not much popular prior to the South African outing, are also expected to rake in big bucks with the Johannesburg victory washing away the bitter memories of India's early exit from the ODI World Cup in the West Indies earlier, prompting many advertisers and corporates to change their ad campaigns and brand ambassadors.

"There are a few companies which have contacted us and shown keen interest," Jeet Banerjee, CEO of Gameplan Sports, which manages Dhoni's account, told. However, he said nothing changes overnight but the cricketers' endorsement value should go up if the team continues to play well.