The Nike kits of the Indian cricket team have come under fire from the players and BCCI for not being up to the mark.
The cricketers complained about the sub-standard quality of the kit to the BCCI, reported The Indian Express. The board’s chief executive Rahul Johri and chief administrator Ratnakar Shetty then brought the issue to the notice of the Committee of Administrators, which has been overseeing the functioning of the board.
Johri is said to have confirmed to the newspaper that COA chairman Vinod Rai has taken up the issue and has set up a meeting with the brand next week to discuss the problem.
“It [Nike’s clothing] has come up for discussion in last COA meeting and chairman CoA [Vinod Rai] took it very strongly,” Johri told the daily. “The team cannot have sub-standard kits and we will be engaging with Nike and he has asked to put our case strongly. We have to engage with them, we will have a meeting with them next week and try to resolve it at earliest.”
Nike became the official sponsor of the Indian cricket team kit in 2006. In 2016 it paid approximately Rs 370 crore to be the Indian team kit sponsor till 2020. When the new jersey for the men’s and women’s cricket teams was launced in January 2017, a BCCI release had called it a symbol of “spirit of self-belief”.
“The game has been evolving over the years and the need to have kits that are designed to suit the modern game has always been the priority for the team management and Nike,” former captain MS Dhoni was quoted as saying then. “Features like the 4D quickness and Zero distractions will definitely help the team on the field.”
There has been no official statement from Nike yet. Meanwhile, India are set to play the second ODI against Sri Lanka on Thursday in the same kit.
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