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NEW DELHI: India's prolific opener Gautam Gambhir has signed a three-year deal with the World Sports Group (WSG).

Gambhir is now the second Indian Indian cricketer after Sachin Tendulkar to have signed the deal with the sports, marketing, media and events management company.

When Gambhir was asked about the development, he said: "WSG supports a brand like Sachin Tendulkar, so it's a great honour to be associated with them. My reassurance comes from the fact that they have successfully looked after Sachin's interests and the people who look after my interests give me a great deal of comfort."

The signing amount was not revealed but the cricketer seemed quite happy with the deal. Earlier, Twenty-first Century Media used to manage Gambhir . WSG CEO Venu Nair said: "Gambhir has the potential to be India's best batsman over the next five years."

Meanwhile, Gambhir said that there are no favourites for the Champions League, which gets underway on Thursday. "There are no favourites, no underdogs in a Twenty20 tournament. Any team using the first six overs well will have the momentum," Gambhir told TOI on Wednesday.

"It's important to start the tournament well. Otherwise, it will be tough to make a comeback -- unlike IPL where you get 14 matches to settle down," Gambhir said.

Taking about his team, he said: "We are certainly going to miss players like AB de Villers, Daniel Vettori and Paul Collingwood."

However, Gambhir has faith in rest of his teammates. Sehwag is back while Tillekaratne Dilshan is in prime form. "We also have Owais Shah and most importantly, it's a good opportunity for cricketers like Mithun Manhas, Rajat Bhatia and Manoj Tiwary."

He also welcomed the news of Glenn McGrath joining the Daredevils camp. "I haven't worked out the final combination. But having McGrath in our fold will certainly help us in many ways. He is an experienced pacer and will also help the young bowlers."