Colombo, June 5 (IANS): Lanka Premier League (LPL) franchise Dambulla Thunders has been re-named as ‘Dambulla Sixers’ after being taken over by a California-based new owner.

Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) and LPL in a joint statement released on Wednesday said, “The team will be operated under DeSilva Holdings, specifically set up for this purpose. The majority stake in Sequoia Consultants is owned by Priyanga De Silva, a Chartered Civil Engineer, who is the CEO and President of Sequoia Consultants, Inc."

De Silva is a former first-class cricketer, who played for Sri Lanka U19 in 1983 and currently represents the United States Masters Over 60 Cricket Team. He also volunteers his time as head coach of the not-for-profit Southern California Youth Cricket.

The development comes after Tamim Rahman, the owner of Dambulla Thunders, was arrested and remanded to police custody on May 23 over an allegation of match-fixing.

"My desire to get engaged in cricket, especially cricket in Sri Lanka, prompted me to purchase the Dambulla Sixers team," said De Silva. "I have seen LPL grow as a league during the last four years, which is commendable for a small country like ours. I am excited to be a part of this growth and be able to contribute to the development of cricket in our country," he added.

However, despite the change in ownership, the players of the team will remain the same, meaning Mustafizur Rahman will play for Dambulla Sixers in the upcoming edition of the LPL.

The fifth edition of the tournament is scheduled to start on July 1 and will be played in three cities: Kandy, Dambulla, and Colombo.