MAM
Top five IPL teams sign playR as their official global exclusive merchandise partner
Mumbai: playR, one of the world’s leading sports and lifestyle brands has partnered with Chennai Super Kings, Mumbai Indians, Rajasthan Royals, and Punjab Kings to provide exclusive global merchandise for season 2023 onwards and Kolkata Knight Riders from season 2024 onwards. playR is also the kitting and clothing partner for Punjab Kings for season 2024.
The range of merchandise offered by playR includes apparel, accessories, and lifestyle products for fans to showcase their love, loyalty and support towards their favourite IPL teams.
playR co-founder and iCOREts Pvt Ltd director Ravi Kukreja expressed his excitement and said, “We are thrilled to announce our association with the CSK, MI, RR, PBKS and KKR and thank them for believing in us year after year. Each team has a different strategy of communicating with its loyal fan base and we respect each and every team fan and playR is diligently working towards catering to each and every fan both domestic and international. From Team-wear Jersey, Fan-wear, Cricket Gear, Fitness and accessories products playR strives to create an almost exhaustive range of products that a Fan can experience as part of their daily life, year-round. Kudos to IPL and its teams that has revolutionised an almost non-existent sports merchandise market in India.”
A Mumbai Indians spokesperson said, “As we continue to grow globally it is imperative to build a wide range of merchandise that fans will cherish to own. We are happy to partner with playR to serve both current and new fans.”
Chennai Super Kings Cricket Ltd CEO Kasi Viswanathan said “We are delighted to have signed up playR as our Global Official Merchandise Partner. We are confident that with playR we can provide our legion of fans exciting and quality CSK merchandise that they can proudly sport.”
Punjab Kings CEO Satish Menon stated, “We are extremely pleased to welcome playR as the global official merchandise partner.” We chose playR after months of study and careful consideration because it matches our principles and dedication to quality. What’s intriguing is the fact that playR as an organisation already has a variety of clothing and cricket equipment, and the company understands our needs and works to ensure that our brand is visible across platforms.
Rajasthan Royals chief marketing officer Zameer Kochar said, “One of the core values at the Royals that we believe in is to cater to the needs of our supporters, and this global partnership will enable us to offer them a specially curated range of merchandise which they can proudly don while they cheer for the team.”
playR is a leading sport and lifestyle brand founded in 2021 and strives to provide customers with unique and edgy apparel, sports equipment, bicycles and accessories that celebrate their style and encourages them to express themselves. It also retails from its dedicated e-commerce store, as well as on multi-brand online stores. playR provides a wide range of products that include t-shirts, jackets, shorts, tracksuits, bats, balls, leg guards, gloves, bicycles, bags, yoga mats, bottles, etc., as well as limited-edition items. playR’s mission is to inspire customers to be creative, confident, and fearless by providing them with a unique and fashionable style. Their goal is to be one of the world’s leading providers of lifestyle, sports and service management.
playR also strives toward building long-term relationships with their customers and employees; they promote community service, and encourage the additional constant education of their employees. They feel it is extremely important to give back to the community that supports the operations, while also maintaining an atmosphere where the employees have the opportunity to improve as individuals.
Brands
YES Bank hands the keys to SBI veteran Vinay Tonse as it bets on a new era
Former SBI managing director appointed as YES Bank’s new MD and CEO
MUMBAI: YES Bank is done rebuilding. Now it wants to grow. The private sector lender has appointed Vinay Muralidhar Tonse as managing director and chief executive officer-designate, with RBI approval secured and a start date of April 6, 2026 confirmed. The three-year term signals the bank’s intent to shift gears from crisis recovery to full-throttle expansion.
Tonse, 60, is no stranger to scale. Most recently managing director at State Bank of India, he oversaw a retail book of roughly $800bn in deposits and advances, one of the largest in the country. Before that, he ran SBI Mutual Fund from August 2020 to December 2022, a stint that saw assets under management surge from Rs 4.32 lakh crore to Rs 7.32 lakh crore across market cycles. Add stints in Singapore and four years leading SBI’s overseas operations in Osaka, and the incoming chief arrives with a genuinely global CV.
His academic grounding is equally solid: a commerce degree from St Joseph’s College of Commerce, Bengaluru, and a master’s in commerce from Bangalore University.
The appointment follows an extensive search and evaluation process by the bank’s Nomination and Remuneration Committee. NRC chairperson Nandita Gurjar said the committee unanimously backed Tonse, citing his leadership track record, governance credentials and ability to drive the bank’s next phase of transformation.
Non-executive chairman Rama Subramaniam Gandhi was unequivocal. “I am certain that Vinay Tonse, with his vast experience as a senior banker, will propel YES Bank to its next phase of growth,” Gandhi said, adding that the bank remains focused on strengthening its retail and corporate banking franchises and expanding its branch network.
Rajeev Kannan, non-executive director and senior executive at Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, the bank’s largest shareholder, said Tonse’s experience across retail, corporate banking, global markets and asset management positioned him well to lead the lender. SMBC said it looks forward to working with Tonse and the board as YES Bank pursues its ambition of becoming a top-tier private sector lender anchored in strong governance and sustainable growth.
Tonse succeeds Prashant Kumar, who took the helm in March 2020 when YES Bank was in freefall following a severe financial crisis, and spent six years painstakingly stabilising the institution, rebuilding governance and restoring operational scale. Gandhi was generous: “The bank remains indebted to Prashant Kumar, who is responsible for much of what a strong financial powerhouse YES Bank is today.”
Tonse, for his part, struck a purposeful note. “Together with the board and my colleagues, I remain deeply committed to creating long-term value for all our stakeholders,” he said, pledging to build on Kumar’s foundation guided by his personal motto: Make A Difference.
Beyond the balance sheet, Tonse played cricket at college and club level and represented Karnataka in archery at the national championships — sports he credits with teaching him teamwork, situational leadership, discipline and focus. In quieter moments, he reaches for retro Kannada music, classic Hindi songs, and the crooning of Engelbert Humperdinck, Mukesh and Kishore Kumar.
YES Bank has its steady-handed rebuilder in Kumar to thank for survival. Now it has a scale-obsessed growth banker at the wheel. The next chapter starts April 6.
