Hameedia hosts legendary ’96 World Cup winners to commemorate 20th anniversary

Sri Lanka’s premier menswear specialist and the official sponsor of clothing for the Sri Lanka cricket team, Hameedia, hosted the ’96 World Cup Champions to a get together on 17March. The event was organised to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the first-ever as well as the one and only One Day International (ODI) Cricket World Cup victory for the country. This win cemented Sri Lanka’s standing as the number one cricketing nation in the world.

The event was held at the Sinhalese Sports Club (SSC) and was attended by all the cricketers who represented the World Cup winning national squad including Arjuna Ranatunga – Captain, Aravinda de Silva – Vice Captain, AsankaGurusinghe, Romesh Kaluwitharana, MarvanAtapattu, RoshanMahanama, Upul Chandana, HashanThilakaratne, ChamindaVaas, Pramodya Wickramasinghe, and Ravindra Pushpakumara.

In an era where little was known about Sri Lankan Cricket, Hameedia’s did its part by backing the 1996 World Cup winning team through the initiation of the first commercial incentive. Fouzul Hameed also offered the team a whole wardrobe from Hameedia’s free of charge in the event they won the T20 World Cup. It is noteworthy that Hameedia remains one of the few companies that have kept true the promise made to the Sri Lankan team and awarded every member of the World Cup squad a complete wardrobe of clothing.   

Aravinda de Silva, Vice-Captain of the 1996 Sri Lanka Cricket team, said: “It would be ideal for Sri Lanka Cricket if we can develop some players like how Roy, Duleep and BandulaWarnapura did in the past. It’s always great to see a new generation doing better than the previous. It was great to see Mahela and Sanga take over from us. I hope they would do the same and develop some cricketersfor the future that are greater than them. Hameedia’s has always been a great supporter of Sri Lanka Cricket. I’m happy that they’ve associated with the game for the past two decades.” 

RoshanMahanama said: “Once again after 20 years, here we are, the guys who conquered the world.We were not given a chance and no one expected us to win the world cup. But against all odds we won it and we are back again, more so now, to show our gratitude towards everyone who supported us. It goes without saying really, Fouzul, I’ve known him for years. He’s one of them who kept up to his promise. Quite a lot of the people promised us everything under the sun after we won the world cup but not many people kept up to their promises.”

One of the world’s most destructive opening wicketkeeper-batsman, Romesh Kaluwitharana, said: “Hameedia has been a great partner for Sri Lanka Cricket since 1996. For us Hameedia’s has always felt like a family because Fouzul has treated all of us like his brothers.”

Also commenting at the anniversary, Ravindra Pushpakumarasaid: “Fouzul was the only one to help us when we won the world cup andHameedia’s has done a great job looking after the cricketers over the past two decades.” 

Further commenting at the event, Captain of the 1996 World cup winning Sri Lankan Cricket team Arjuna Ranatunga, now Minister of Ports, Shipping and Aviation, stated: “Hameedia really supported us when we were not recognised by anyone. These are the people who really should be commended for their support to the game and to the players.” 

Hameedia Managing DirectorFouzul Hameed stated: “1996 was a great year for Sri Lanka Cricket. The underdogs of cricket became the champions of the world. It was a great feeling for all Sri Lankan cricket fans. They marked Sri Lanka on the world map as a cricketing nation. It has been a pleasure supporting them through these years. I would like thank all of them for associating with Hameedia’s throughout the years. To date, we have stood by our cricketing legends supporting them in every way we can and we will continue to do so. Our pledge is not only to the Sri Lanka Cricket team but also to the men of Sri Lanka.”

Hameedia continues its support to Sri Lanka Cricket over two decades of being the official formal clothing partner of Board for Cricket Control in Sri Lanka (BCCSL). The company has been providing unwavering support to the cricketers and the Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) to date. 

Hameedia was established in 1949 and has grown to become a household brand in Sri Lanka. Renowned for high quality custom tailoring and ready-made clothes for gentlemen, the Hameedia multi-brand retail stores house a collection of quality menswear brands including Le Bond, Envoy, Signature, Raymond, Lee and adidas to name a few. Hameedia also prides itself on offering exceptional standards of service to ensure that clients enjoy a positive and personalised experience at each store. With a network of over 30 outlets across Sri Lanka and a team of over 1,000 employees, Hameedia has a strong local presence and has also expanded globally with outlets in the Maldives and Australia.