Asia Cup 2018: UAE Exchange in lead to replace Micromax as title sponsor

UAE Exchange is engaged in negotiations to replace Chinese mobile handset brand Micromax as the title sponsor for the Asia Cup cricket tournament.

UAE Exchange, the United Arab Emirates finance company engaged in remittances, foreign exchange and bill payments solutions, is about to close the deal for the Asia Cup 2018 title. The 50-over One-Day International tournament will be played in Dubai and Abu Dhabi fromSeptember 15 to 28. The deal is expected to be closed for around ₹ 22 crore.

Micromax two years back had committed ₹ 13 to 14 crore for the T20, 11-match Asia Cup. With the introduction of Super Four format, the 2018 edition will have two more games and more airtime for the  50-over format. “Considering Indian Premier League’s ratings on Star Sports, a ₹2 crore for a match is an absolutely realistic value for the Asia Cup title. Let us not forget there are likely to be at least two, or possibly 3, India-Pakistan games, which will invoke immense response in the two countries. For a multinational brand with its operations in India and Pakistan, this Asia Cup is a great marketing opportunity,” a leading media buyer told insidesport.co.

India will meet Pakistan on September 19 at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium. This will be the first meeting between the two traditional rivals ever since the ICC Champions Trophy final in June last year. As the best four teams from the six qualify for the Super Four stage, another meeting between the two teams is not ruled out. Given Pakistan’s current form and Virat Kohli-led Indian team’s class an Indo-Pak final in Dubai cannot be ruled out for September 29.

The Asian Cricket Council event was earlier scheduled for India. However, the prevalent tension between India and Pakistan for  the latter’s State-sponsored terrorism policy to create unrest in India has resulted in the tournament being moved to the United Arab Emirates.

The six team event is scheduled to be held in Dubai and Abu Dhabi from September 15 to 28. An Asian qualifier will join India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Afghanistan for the Asian Cricket Council competition.

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