India cricket team captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni "is unlikely to see his brand value erode due to the ongoing spot-fixing controversy and the hearing in the Supreme Court," according to Pinto & Mitra of the Indian BUSINESS STANDARD. Former Percept Talent Senior VP of Strategy & Business Development Hitesh Gossain said, "As long as he performs and leads the Indian side successfully, I don’t think there will be any impact on his brand value." Harish Salve, advocate for the petitioner in the match-fixing controversy, said that Dhoni, the Chennai Super Kings captain, "had lied to the probe panel" about CSK Owner Gurunath Meiyappan’s role in CSK. However, advertisers who hired Dhoni as their brand ambassador said that "they would rather wait before taking a decision to drop him." Aircel and Reebok, part of the adidas Group, said that they would continue to be associated with Indian Premier League "and there was no change in their advertising plans." Dhoni "endorses 16-17 brands, including Pepsi, Lays, Gulf Oil, Star Sports, Ashok Leyland, McDowell’s, Amrapali (a real estate company), Lafarge, Reebok and Aircel." He "is the highest-paid cricketer when it comes to endorsements in India." Trust Research Advisory CEO N. Chandramouli said, "Dhoni invokes trust. His humble nature and small-town roots have ensured he remained among the top-three most-trusted sports personalities in the country, according to our brand trust report for three years" (BUSINESS STANDARD, 3/29).
