Following Sri Lanka’s strong performances against India, England, and New Zealand, former captain Sanath Jayasuriya has been named head coach of the men’s cricket team. Jayasuriya’s appointment became effective on October 1, 2024 and will last until March 31, 2026. “The Executive Committee of Sri Lanka Cricket made this decision taking into consideration the team’s good performances in the recent tours against India, England, and New Zealand, where Jayasuriya was in charge as the interim head coach,” the cricket association said in a statement.
His first duty as head coach will be to prepare for the upcoming limited-overs matches against the West Indies in Dambulla and Pallekele.
The former offensive batter, who previously served as the SLC’s cricket consultant, was appointed temporary head coach of the men’s national team in July. Sri Lanka Cricket appointed him after English coach Chris Silverwood resigned after a rocky start with the T20 World Cup.
Over the last few months, Sri Lanka has triumphed over India in their first bilateral ODI series in 27 years, humiliated New Zealand 2-0 in home Tests, and defeated England away in a Test match for the first time in ten years, all under Jayasuriya’s leadership.Jayasuriya played 110 Tests between 1991 and 2007, scoring 6973 runs at an average of 40.07, with 14 hundreds and 31 fifties. The left-hander scored 13,430 runs at an average of 32.36 in 445 One-Day Internationals, including 28 hundreds and 68 half-centuries. He was instrumental in Sri Lanka’s triumph at the 1996 ODI World Cup.
