Vikas Rambal is certainly cricket’s new Richie Rich. Mobile ESPN’s Faisal Kamal finds out the man behind Western Australia.

Shah Rukh Khan, Preity Zinta, Vijay Mallaya and now Vikas Rambal. The new kid on the franchise block has now arrived with his Rambal Warriors ready to rumble in the Champions League Twenty20 starting December 3.

The name ‘Vikas Rambal' may just become as popular when the Warriors play their opening game against Sialkot Stallions in Group B at the Chinnaswamy in Bangalore on December 4. A representative of the Rambal family, Vikas, is also the chairman and managing director of the North West Chemicals and Fertilizers Pvt Ltd, Western Australia.

A Kashmiri Pandit by descent, Vikas was born in Delhi and later moved to Perth in 2001 with his wife and two sons to explore new business ventures in western Australia.

Cricket has long been a passion in the Rambal family and Vikas and his sons are avid followers of local, national and international cricket. Hence, the association with the Champions League is an extension of his love for the game. As Vikas said, "My brother (Manoj Rambal) and we both played cricket for school and college. Unfortunately, we could not play international cricket, so we always had a passion to do that. This is one way to involve ourselves in cricket."

Vikas, who has been a valued partner of Western Australia Cricket Association (WACA) for a long time, vehemently denies that he is doing this just for money. Vikas clarifies, "You can talk and engage yourself in a very professional way so that's what I am looking at it. Right now I am not looking at the cash revenue, this is not my main business.

"I am looking for establishment in India through cricket. I love hockey also and tomorrow, I could be sponsoring hockey. Cricket and hockey are my passions."

Having said this, Vikas believes that tournaments like the Indian Premier League and the Champions League have erased the regional bias present in the game. Citing the example of his own unit, where Mike Hussey chose to play for Chennai Super Kings rather than his state team Rambal Warriors (read: Western Australia). That is why Vikas terms this weeklong event a historic tournament, not in terms of money, but the nature and the kind of people associated with it.

Say Vikas, "Money is one thing. It doesn't buy you happiness or the passion you have for a game. That's why I sponsor Tom Moody (coach of Westren Australia and Rambal Warriors). If you see my background in cricket, Moody has been associated with me for a long time."

The businessman though sure does wear his Indianness on the sleeve. One of the few NRIs to have retained his Indian passport, Vikas makes it very clear that he may be backing Rambal Warriors in T20 cricket but when it comes to an India versus Australia game, he is a true Team India aficionado.

He says, "I'm proud to be with Indian cricket. I will support Indian cricket anytime. Cricketers are all professionals."

Cricket sure does bring the best out of an Indian!