The 134th ‘Battle of the Blues’ will be powered by Etisalat who have secured sponsorship rights to one of the oldest cricketing rivalries for another three years.
The Royal-Thomian has been considered the pinnacle of schools cricket with a rich history of over 130 years. The two teams will don their school colours on the 7th, 8th and 9th of March at the Singhalese Sports Club in what is tipped to be a very interesting tussle.
Speaking at the press conference held at the Atrium, Cinnamon Grand today, Mr. Seneka de Fonseka, the Chairman of the Royal-Thomian Organizing Committee highlighted a few main responsibilities of the committee, ‘As the organizing committee we have to ensure that play will go on without interruption, we have to ensure that the safety of everybody at the ground is looked into and keeping with this 133 year old tradition, we have to ensure that everybody who comes for the match has a good time.’
He went on to introduce the new sponsorship agreement by stating ‘Etisalat has been with us for the past three years, and I am happy to say that they have agreed to support us for the coming three years, so it is a substantial amount of money which we would like to keep confidential.’ The telecommunication giant will now have extended their hold on this ‘mega cricket festival ‘ up until 2015.
‘One of the greatest cricketing rivalries in the world, if we were in one of the richer countries this will be ‘the’ greatest cricketing show, it would be a spectacle of massive proportions that we would probably not imagine.’ The Warden of S. Thomas College Professor Indra de Soysa went on to say that he feels extremely proud to be a part of this but he believes with the pride comes a tremendous burden of responsibility to ensure that the Royal-Thomian stays at the pinnacle of the cricket world, and also to continue to build this friendly rivalry such that people in the future will enjoy it as much as the current and past generations have done.
The Principal of Royal College, Mr. Upali Gunasekara made an important point in the direction of the funds and its uses, ‘This main sponsorship that we get for the Royal-Thomian, we use not only for cricket but also for the less privileged sports. ‘
After the handing over the cheque from Etisalat Director/CEO Mr. Dumindra Ratnayake to the two heads of the schools, he stated, ‘After three highly successful years, we are proud to be associated with the ‘Battle of the Blues’ for the fourth consecutive year. The association with this leading ‘Big Match’ encounter is in keeping with our goal of uplifting and encouraging school cricket across Sri Lanka. ‘, Mr. Ratnayake also mentioned that cricket is not their only focus in terms of sport, and Etisalat is committed to supporting the various sports and will continue to help uplift the Sri Lankan sporting arena.
Last year’s encounter ended in a stalemate, as S. Thomas’ College who were the victors last in 2007 retained the prestigious D.S. Senanayake Shield. The Royalists led by Devin Pathmanathan will look to fight hard in getting the shield which has eluded them for four years back to Reid Avenue, while Javed Bongso and his mates will hope to spoil the blue and gold party.
