Timex signs Brett Lee as brand ambassador for Billenium

Our Corporate Bureau
09 August 2003

The agreement, initially for a period of one year, will see Lee flying to India in September 2003 to shoot advertising material and make select appearances. He will also be making appearances on behalf of Timex during the Australian visit to India in November 2003.

Lee had this to stay about the association: "It is a privilege to join hands with Timex Watches and to do so both in India and Australia, my home country. India is a personal favourite because the passion for cricket is at its highest here. This is very exciting for me. Also, Timex is known for sport, performance and an active lifestyle, some of the things that are important to me. I look forward to coming to India in September as part of the Timex team in their Billenium year."

Lee, one of the two truly express pace bowlers in the modern game, has electrified audiences around the cricket-watching world with his combination of athleticism, power, good looks and skill. His superb bowling in the 2003 World Cup was one of the high points of the tournament and played no small part in Australia''s eventual hoisting of the trophy.

Says Timex Watches regional director (South-Pacific) and managing director (India) Kapil Kapoor: "In the year when we are celebrating the Timex Billenium representing the sale of over 100 crore watches worldwide, we are also assisting in the search for India''s fastest pace bowlers. Having Brett Lee come aboard at this juncture is most exciting for us."

Lee has lately been ''the enforcer'' in the Australian team, and his strike rate of 125 wickets in 33 Tests and 133 wickets in 71 one-day internationals speaks for itself. Additionally, he has already notched up two Test half-centuries to his name. But it is more in his role as "game turner" that Lee is best known, his ability to turn a match on its head with a short, devastating spell of express pace bowling.

The agreement was brokered by IMG, Lee''s exclusive commercial representatives in the subcontinent. "It''s been a pleasure to bring one of the world''s best brands together with one of the true stars of world cricket. Accuracy, performance and good looks are just a few of the attributes shared by Timex and Brett — they are a great fit," says Ravi Krishnan, managing director, IMG/TWI India, and senior international vice-president, IMG.