DASKA – Local and export purchase orders for cricket goods and garments industry such as green cricket shirt, trouser, team bats, batting gloves, pads and cricket balls have massively increased in Cricket World Cup 2011, said Director of Malik Sports Malik Zahid.
Three famous Pakistani brands MB, CA and AS have captured 60 percent of total world cricket goods market. He said that Pakistan produced around half a million batting pads and gloves annually – out of which around 0.2 million were exported. Pakistan also exports around 150,000 English willow handmade cricket bats annually. He further said that cricket bats are recognised for their quality and many players in the ongoing World Cup are using bats made in Pakistan. He maintained that total export of cricket goods from Sialkot is over $15 million, which is likely to increase this year due to the World Cup. Zahid said that total export of sports industry of Sialkot was over $1.2 billion a year without the support of the government. If the government facilitates the sports industry, export can be doubled, he claimed.
