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Boomerangs and Kangaroos may have long burdened the long list of Australian clichés for most Indians earlier but today, it's Australia's Team Eleven which has captured the imagination of a cricket hungry nation like India.
In India, a good game of cricket will always be appreciated even if the team playing is not Indian. The Australian team has enjoyed a very good rapport with the press in India (save for a few exceptions like Shane Warne) ever since the Australian brother duo of Steve and Mark Waugh were first signed up by Indian companies to endorse brands like MRF. Young turks like Ricky Ponting, Mathew Hayden, Adam Gilchrist, Brett Lee and Jason Gillespie among others have since been lapped up by Indian companies for endorsement deals.
These endorsements may be short term, signed on, just before the start of a major series in India, or may be a long term contract extending over a year. There are also endorsements which occur because the player endorses the brand globally.
Law of averages? No thanks! We are Australian!
The Australians have the advantage of being the world's best team, at the moment. On field, they have been consistent and are known to deliver the goods. Off field, they are media savvy and have great people management skills. Sanjay Jha, Co founder and Managing Editor, Cricketnext, explains, "There is no team that can beat the Australians in terms of their track record right now. They have been dominating world cricket for the last 6 years, ever since they won the World Cup successively in 1999 and 2003. It is difficult to see an assembly of such great performers in any other team, which may have one lone star like in the case of West Indies and Brian Lara."
"This Indian fascination for Australian cricketers was really triggered off by Steve Waugh's statement that the Australians had to conquer the final frontier, namely India!" observes Prashant Singh, Business head, Fresh Brew Communications, "That statement went on to create one of the biggest rivalries of our times: namely India and Australia. The other reason for the sudden interest in Indo-Australia matches was the fact that internationally, Indo-Pak matches were not being played for sometime and the Ashes was becoming a one sided game. In India and Australia, you had two world class teams, which were pitted against each other. In fact, apart from Pakistanis, the Aussies are probably ‘the coolest foreigners’ for most Indians. Today, Indo-Aussie matches are in the same league as Indo-Pak series: namely the Category A matches, which are subject to higher rates for ad spots and on ground signage because such matches justify the spends."
Aussies embody values like aggression and competitiveness, which appeal to a cricket hungry nation like India. So how important a market is India for the Aussies? Neil Maxwell, Brett Lee's manager, observes, "I think the Indian market will play an important role more in the future than what it is doing today for Australians. Brett Lee is a straightforward cricketer and if you don't mind me saying so, he is also a very good looking bloke. All these factors work for him in terms of his appeal in the Indian market. He has had some great working relationships with brands like Timex, TVS, Boost and recently, New Balance."
Maxwell reveals that between 25 to 30 per cent of Brett's annual endorsement revenue comes from India. While players like Brett Lee and Ricky Ponting enjoy mass appeal, others like Shane Warne who have not enjoyed a very good media image in India are not as popular for endorsements.
Jha says of Warne, "Due to the bad press he has received, Warne is far too controversial to be projected as a 'squeaky clean boy.' But I can imagine him being used for a liquor brand or for brands where a certain machismo has to be projected."
It has been suggested that one of the reasons for the huge popularity of Aussies is the fact that they are relatively cheaper than Indian middle level cricketers and are more consistent in their performances. Given the fact that they have been relatively unexposed, their presence also helps in breaking ad clutter.
Anirban Blah, CEO, Globosport, states, "The reason behind their popularity is simple: it's a tactical move at ensuring differentiation and given the fact that the Aussie cricketers are relatively cheaper than some of the top rung Indian cricketers. And the association works. Of course, money is not the only criteria under consideration here. At the end of the day, sponsors also want returns on their investments."
To read the entire story, grab your copy of Impact Advertising and Weekly magazine issue dated June 6-12, 2005