Ajantha Mendis

With a match bag of over 20 wickets in a series including a world record in the India-Sri Lanka test series which ended this week, freak Sri Lankan spinner Ajantha Mendis must be heading for another record of sorts – garnering the largest number of sponsorships in such a short time.

Having played just eight one-day internationals and three tests in five months since April 2008, Mendis has already clinched three sponsorships – Dialog, Cargills and the Bank of Ceylon – and others are under negotiation, according to his manager Roshan Abeysinghe.

“It must be the fastest number of sponsorships for a new and inexperienced international cricketer,” a brand specialist noted. So what makes Mendis special for sponsors to line up? “He appeals to a cross section of audiences.

He is young, a son of the soil and is from the armed forces. Patrotism is part of the brand appeal,” says Murtaza A.Tajbhoy, Manager, Brand Planning at Leo Burnett which initiated the Cargills and Bank of Ceylon deals.

He said youth in the country look up to sports, specially cricket, and the military while cricket is popular across the board. “Sports stars are more popular than anybody else,” he said.