While many brands try to make the best of the latest IPL season, Virgin Mobile has a fun and quirky online initiative for the same. Virgin was apparently in talks with the Delhi Daredevils for a sponsorship deal which turned out sour. 

But I was really thrilled to discover the latest online game from Virgin Mobile titled Indian Hatke League (IHL). The online fantasy game is a pun on the biggest cricketing event and you can register on IndianHatkeLeague.com to play the tournament. Though it is an online fantasy game the prizes are for real. The Man of the Series will end up as a proud owner of a Hyundai i20 while others have the chance to win Sony Play Station’s and Virgin Mobile handsets. The game is a brand-building exercise for Virgin Mobile which has been active on the Internet with varied campaigns.
The content is zany with some innovative hooks. Even the teams have quirky names like Mumbai Manoos owned by Mukesh Aamdani while Kolkata Tram Riders is owned by Ruk-Ruk Khan. The player names are equally funny – Dickey Ponting, P. CallingCard, Viru Suhaag.

Overall the IHL looks like a wondrous way to leverage the power of the Internet and its users. And with real prizes as a bait I am sure IHL will get a good response.