Gambhir Opens Ambassadorship with MRF Tyres

Left-handed opening batsman, Gautam Gambhir has become the new face of MRF Tyres in India joining the deep pool of cricketing talent previously associated with the brand, which includes Steve Waugh, Brian Lara and Sachin Tendulkar. Gambhir – or “Gauti” to his friends and mildly sycophantic media commentators – was introduced as MRF’s ambassador at a glitzy Chennai ceremony on Friday, 4 September.

Gambhir has been one of India’s most consistent performers in all forms of cricket over the past three years, now boasting excellent averages of 54 in Tests, 37 in One Day Internationals and nearly 30 in Twenty20 Internationals. The 27-year old spoke on Friday about the importance of “handling pressure” at the top of any team’s innings – a feature not lost on MRF’s PR department, one would suggest, given the obvious link to tyres’ ability to do the same thing.

In addition to being one of India’s most prominent tyre manufacturers, MRF started its life as a balloon-maker in 1946, and is now – among other things – a supplier of sports equipment, including cricket bats. Its association with cricket extends to the MRF Pace Foundation, which was set up in 1988 with Australian bowler, Dennis Lillee as its director.