IPL 2021 update: KKR, RCB and PBKS to up revenues in a first-of-its-kind way in India

The 14th edition of the Indian Premier League had to be postponed indefinitely after multiple franchises including Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Delhi Capitals (DC) reported a breach in the IPL 2021 bio-bubble. The sudden suspension of the competition meant that the key stakeholders had to face a significant business and financial impact. However, participating teams like the Kolkata Knight Riders, Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and Punjab Kings (PBKS) have found a unique way to boost their revenues despite the cash-rich league's postponement. 

IPL news: KKR, RCB and PBKS join cryptocurrency-backed engagement platform Socios

Socios is a fan engagement platform which is backed by the cryptocurrency giant Chiliz. The platform is based on the Chiliz blockchain infrastructure. Moreover, Socios uses $CHZ as its exclusive on-platform currency. The platform aims to provide 'socio-based' ownership to clubs and teams and helps them establish a stronger relationship with their fans. LaLiga is a football competition that is known to have a club Socios system of team ownership. Socios provides an opportunity for fans to stay connected and even influence the decisions of their favourite clubs and teams. 

While the platform was already associated with prominent names from football, motorsport, fighting and eSports industries, they have also ventured out into cricket with their partnership with KKR, RCB and PBKS. Speaking on the latest development, KKR CEO Venky Mysore in his official statement stated that Socios has proven to be a powerful tool in fan engagement and through the platform, the franchise will be able to optimize how they engage with their fans. 

IPL news: A total of four KKR team players test positive for COVID-19 

The Kolkata Knight Riders were the first franchise to confirm that members from their contingent had tested positive for the coronavirus during the IPL 2021. Varun Chakravarthy and Sandeep Warrier were the first two players whose tests returned positive. New Zealand's Tim Seifert was the third player from the KKR team to have contracted the deadly virus. KKR pacer Prasidh Krishna had left the bio-bubble in Ahmedabad after testing negative for COVID-19, however, he tested positive after returning to Bengaluru. 

Pat Cummins donation for COVID-19

Pat Cummins, who became the talk of the town in India after he promised to donate $50,000 (i.e. approximately INR 36,65,575) to the PM-CARES Fund to help the country cope up with the deadly virus, recently revealed that he has ended up allocating his donation to UNICEF Australia. Cummins took to his social media accounts to reveal that he has donated the money to UNICEF Australia's 'India COVID-19 Crisis Appeal', an initiative started in partnership with Cricket Australia and the Australian Cricketers' Association (ACA) to help tackle the ongoing crisis in India. Here is the Pat Cummins donation tweet: 

Image source: RCB / PBKS / KKR / Instagram