A new cricket ball with India cricket captain Sourav Ganguly's nickname, Maharaj, as its brand name is ready to enter the market.

Mullick Enterprise, the Kolkata-based sports good manufacturer of the reasonably priced balls, claims that they will give 'tough competition' to established brands like SG and SS.

"We hope to get West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharya to launch the new brand in the presence of Sourav Ganguly on November 19," said Seema Mullick, proprietor of Mullick Enterprise.

Ganguly has a contract with Sunridges (SS) for his bats, but is not known to endorse any ball.

Mullick, who claims to have got the nod from both Bhattacharya and Ganguly, said it was regretable that despite a huge growth in cricket's popularity in Bengal, there has been no improvement in the cricket goods industry.

"Most cricket accessories come from Meerut in Uttar Pradesh, which is why they are expensive," explained the entrepreneur, who is being helped in her business by her two sons. "We will be able to provide affordably priced balls because we are local manufacturers."

SG's 'Test' balls are approved by the Board of Control for Cricket in India, but at Rs 600 apiece they are beyond the reach of most aspiring cricketers. Practice balls cost about Rs 250. "But we can give our Maharaj balls at a lower price," said Mullick, who has started her venture with raw material and workers from Meerut.