A partnership of Sri Lanka's finest exports

The Board of Control for Cricket in Sri Lanka (BCCSL) announced Friday that Dilmah Tea had won official Sri Lankan team sponsorship rights team for the next three years.

The Sponsorship will include using the Dilmah Logo on all official Team clothing and the team's participation in selected promotional activity.

A new one-day and training kit has already been designed and manufactured and will be used for the first time in Sharjah on October 26, when the team participates in a triangular series with Pakistan and Zimbabwe.

The team sponsorship rights had previously been held by Singer Sri Lanka Ltd, a leading global electronics manufacturer, for the last six years.

BCCSL Chief Executive, Anura Tennekoon, said: "The Board of Control for Cricket in Sri Lanka is delighted that the two products for which Sri Lanka is most famous, tea and cricket, are being blended to form a partnership that I believe will be extremely beneficial to Sri Lanka cricket and will no doubt provide a tremendous marketing boost for the leading brand name in Sri Lanka's tea industry."

MJF Group of Companies Director, Mr Malik Fernando, said: " Sri Lankan Cricket, The Ceylon Tea Industry and Dilmah Tea have many things in common. Both tea and cricket are a legacy of the British. In both areas Sri Lanka has started with humble beginnings; and sheer perseverance and grit has helped us grow to be lions in the global arena. In cricket and the tea industry, our Team and Dilmah Tea are forces to reckon with, and hence this partnership makes all of us at Dilmah proud."

MJF hope that it's partnership will help it enhance the Sri Lankan identity of the Dilmah brand in the countries where the team will play, many of which are key markets for Dilmah, including New Zealand, Australia, Middle East and most recently the United Kingdom.

"We enjoy an increasingly strong presence in many of the cricketing countries," added Fernando. "In many ways Dilmah Tea and cricket are Sri Lanka's finest exports there. These synergies make winning the sponsorship deal a true victory for Dilmah."