Yuvraj Singh is made to face upheaval after upheaval. Already out of favour with the national selectors, he will soon find himself in the cold with advertisers as well if he remains out of international cricket for too long, felt ad guru Prahlad Kakkar.

Yuvraj was demoted to Grade B of the Board of Control for Cricket in India's central contract system yesterday. Suresh Raina was promoted to Grade A instead.

"Yuvraj's commercial and brand value will definitely take a beating. It won't be the same anymore," Kakkar told MiD DAY.


India's star left hander Yuvraj Singh shakes a leg with Bollywood
beauties, Neha Dhupia (left) and Mughda Godse at a recent gig

Business
He added: "It is business at the end of the day. They are not here to support a sport. It doesn't matter how big a star you are, it's performance that matters. A superstar's value will definitely go down if his or her film flops. Ditto with cricketers.

"People pay to watch you do well on the field. Everything else is secondary."

Kakkar, however, suggested that Yuvraj should lower his endorsement price tag. "At least through ads, he can remain in public memory. If he remains out of top-class cricket for too long, he will soon be forgotten," he said.

Bunty Sajdeh, owner of Cornerstone India, who manage Yuvraj's business affairs, said the demotion in contract will not affect his brand value. "Yuvraj is going through a lean patch right now, but I don't think his brand value will get affected. He has been playing top-level cricket for a while now. Cricketers go through these phases in their careers. It is only a matter of time he bounces back," Sajdeh said.