Sanath Jayasuriya Appointed Sri Lanka's Permanent Head Coach After Impressive Performance

Sanath Jayasuriya to continue as Sri Lanka men's head coach [Source: @ICC/X.com]

In a significant development, Sri Lanka Cricket have announced Sanath Jayasuriya as their permanent Men's Head Coach considering the team’s good performances in the recent tours against India, England, and New Zealand.

The new contract took effect on October 1, 2024, and will run until March 31, 2026. Jayasuriya was initially appointed as a cricket consultant for one year in December of the previous year, with a primary focus on working with the High Performance Centre. 

However, he later traveled with the team to this year's T20 World Cup and subsequently assumed the role of interim head coach. Despite some setbacks, such as losing the T20I series against India and two Test defeats in England, Sri Lanka's successes have outweighed these disappointments. 

The team is currently in contention for a place in the World Test Championship final, and Jayasuriya's new contract as the head coach will see him leading the team beyond the current cycle's conclusion.

"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'," Sri Lanka Cricket said in X post.

Sanath Jayasuriya’s first assignment as head coach will be the upcoming limited-overs matches against West Indies, starting on October 13 at Rangiri Dambulla International Stadium.

Sanath Jayasuriya’s Contribution To Sri Lanka

The former star cricketer has made significant contributions to Sri Lanka. He was an aggressive batter in his prime and has revolutionised how openers approach ODI cricket. He has scored 21032 across formats with 42 centuries and 103 fifties and an impressive strike rate of 81.17.

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