Seylan Bank Men’s Basketball Team Scripts Historic Triumph: Clinches Mercantile A Division Title After 29 Years

Seylan Bank’s men’s basketball team has won the 2026 Mercantile A Division title with a 73–61 victory in the final, ending a 29-year wait for the championship, according to the bank. Captain Chanuka Fernando led the side, while Sasindu Gajanayake was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player.

The title came at the 34th Mercantile Services Basketball League Tournament, with Seylan identifying 1997 as its previous men’s A Division championship year. The final was settled by a margin of 12 points.

The squad combined emerging players with experienced national-level athletes representing the bank. Its route to the championship followed earlier competition in D Division and subsequent progress through the mercantile basketball tiers.

That earlier chapter is documented in Seylan’s 2012 annual report, which lists the men’s team as winners of the Mercantile Basketball Tournament’s D Division. The record provides a reference point for the longer journey described in the latest announcement. cdn.cse.lk

Gajanayake’s MVP recognition added an individual tournament honour to the team title. Fernando’s captaincy and the squad’s mix of experience and developing talent were highlighted by the bank in its account of the campaign.

The result also adds to Seylan’s recent basketball honours across its men’s and women’s teams. Its 2025 annual report records the women’s side as A Division champions at the 33rd Mercantile Services Basketball League Tournament.

The men’s championship is a separate achievement in the following edition. Together, the records place the latest result within the bank’s wider participation in competitive employee sport, which also includes hockey, netball, swimming, table tennis and athletics. seylan.lk