Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. has accepted the title sponsorship offer of the inaugural Sri Lanka Premier League Twenty20 tournament. The $15.4 billion company saw a phenomenal jump — from sale of 500 vehicles in fiscal 2010 to 11,000 last year in the Sri Lankan market — to sponsor a cricket tournament in Sri Lanka in a big way.

“We were offered the title sponsorship. It is a multi-year sponsorship agreement and the event will be known as the Mahindra Sri Lanka Premier League. Sri Lanka is a strategic market for the Mahindra Group which is already a household name in the country and what better medium than cricket to connect and engage with audiences as it is the most followed sport in the sub-continent with a fan base of approximately 1.5 billion across India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Bangladesh’’ said Shriprakash Shukla, President (Group Strategy- Mahindra Rise) at a press conference at the company’s corporate office here on Wednesday.

The Mahindra player of the tournament will receive an XUV500 that will be displayed at the venues right through the league that will be played from August 11 to 31.

The winner of the tournament from among the seven teams in Basnahira Cricket Dundee, Kandurata Warriors, Nagenahira Nagas, Ruhuna Royals, Uthura Rudras, Uva Next and Wayamba United Squad will advance to the qualifying stage of the Champions League Twenty20 to be played in South Africa.

“Mahindra & Mahindra’s sponsorship of the league will boost cricket in Sri Lanka,’’ said Aravinda de Silva, former Sri Lanka captain and Deputy Chairman, Ideal Motors (Pvt.) Ltd., which distributes the Mahindra range of vehicles in the island nation. (TheHindu)