Hampshire chairman exits after Delhi Capitals co-owner takeover

Rod Bransgrove has stepped down from his role as Hampshire chairman, following the completion of the takeover by GMR Global, the English county cricket side announced on Wednesday.

The 76-year-old businessman saved the county from financial collapse when he bought the club in 2000, and led the move to the Rose Bowl from Hampshire’s old Northlands Road headquarters in Southampton.

Bransgrove has long campaigned for the Rose Bowl to stage a Test against Australia and his dream will be realised during the 2027 Ashes in England.

GMR, who co-own Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Delhi Capitals, have now finalised the staged acquisition of the Hampshire Sport and Leisure Holdings Group, a process that began in 2024.

GMR’s Kiran Kumar Grandhi will take over from Bransgrove, who becomes honorary life president and a director on the board.

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“This moment brings to a close a chapter that has meant more to me than words can express,” said Bransgrove.

“What we have built at Hampshire has been a collective effort, driven by incredible people, loyal supporters and partners who believed in a shared vision.”

He added: “I have immense pride in what we have achieved here and unequivocal confidence that, under GMR’s full ownership, the club and venue are in the safest of hands. The future is incredibly exciting, and I will be watching closely.”

Grandhi, meanwhile paid tribute to Bransgrove’s “extraordinary leadership and vision”, saying GMR were “excited to build on the remarkable legacy that has been established here, investing in long-term growth and innovation”.

For the unversed, GMR is an Indian consortium and has e

GMR, an Indian infrastructure conglomerate, has greatly expanded its cricketing interests in recent years. Besides the IPL and Women’s Premier League (WPL) with Delhi Capitals, it also manages Dubai Capitals in the ILT20 and Seattle Orcas in Major League Cricket.

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Delhi Capitals overseas players’ bats, kits stolen amid IPL: Indian Media

NEW DELHI: A shocking burglary hit the ongoing cash-rich Indian Premier League (IPL) as bats, pads and other equipment of Delhi Capitals’ players were stolen from their kit bags, Hindustan Times reported on Wednesday.

According to the details, the items went missing during the Capitals’ travel from Bengaluru to New Delhi via transit and the players found out about the development once their kit bags were delivered to the rooms.

The majority of the items stolen were bats – David Warner and Phil Salt lost three each and Mitchell Marsh two. India youngster Yash Dhull, however, was a victim of five stolen bats.

The issue was flagged and a complaint has been raised over the same. Some bats of certain overseas players cost around about 0.34m PKR each while total equipment was worth 5.4m PKR.

Besides bats, a number of cricketers also had their shoes, gloves and more stolen.

“All of them were shocked when they heard that everyone had lost something or the other from their kit bags. This is the first time such an incident has happened and the matter was soon raised to the logistics department, police and later at the airport. The investigation is on,” said a DC source.

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