The cricket team of the island nation has opted for the former captain Sanath Jayasuriya as the acting head coach before the white-ball home series against India starts next month. Beginning on July 27, the Indian side is due to stage three Twenty20 internationals, followed by three one-day internationals (ODIs) in Sri Lanka.
After English coach Chris Silverwood quit as Sri Lanka’s head coach last week, the board appointed 55-year-old Jayasuriya, who was once a brutal opener in his playing days for the team, in an interim capacity.
Silverwood quit after the team was knocked out of the T20 World Cup, and they performed poorly in the first round for the Indian team. The ‘Daily Mirror’ newspaper claimed that the former top selector Jayasuriya would be leading the Sri Lanka Test tour to England.
One of the most brash players of the recent past, Jayasuriya coached the team during the T20 World Cup in the USA and the Caribbean recently.
“I have been asked to take over coaching”- Sanath Jayasuriya
Former Sri Lankan opening batsman Sanathan Jayasuriya has been appointed the ‘acting’ coach of the Sri Lanka national cricket team. On Monday, Jayasuriya stated he was contacted by the board for the top role, replacing Chris Silverwood, who stepped down after the T20 World Cup in the West Indies and the USA.
Sanath Jayasuriya was a national team selector before this appointment with the bush/shield team. Moreover, such a year has been adequately occupied by assisting in the performance of the company while supervising the training process of both coaches and players in the high-performance center situated in Khettarama.
“I have been asked to take over coaching and I am happy to do it,” Sanath Jayasuriya told AFP news agency.
“Sri Lanka Cricket wishes to announce the appointment of Mr. Sanath Jayasuriya as the ‘Interim Head Coach’ of the National Team. He will function in the position until the completion of Sri Lanka’s tour of England in September 2024,” the cricket board said in a release.
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