Mahela Jayawardena Named ‘Consultant Coach’ Of Sri Lanka Team

Former Sri Lanka captain and excellent batter of his time, Mahela Jayawardena has now joined the national team coaching setup as the new ‘Consultant Coach’ of the Sri Lanka unit, the Sri Lanka Cricket Board announced on December 13, 2021.

Jayawardena’s term will begin from January 1, 2022, and in his new role, which is effective for a period of one year, will be in charge of the overall cricketing element of the national teams and will provide invaluable strategic support for the players and management teams at the High-Performance Center.

‘’We are extremely happy that Mahela is joining the National Team for an extended role, especially given the context that Sri Lanka has a heavy international calendar during the year 2022. Mahela’s contributions during the first round of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup became invaluable for the overall performances of our team in the concluded event,,’’ said Ashley De Silva, CEO of Sri Lanka Cricket.

My Main Role Will Be Supporting Our Team Of National Coaches And Support Staff: Mahela Jayawardena

Jayawardena, since his retirement from international cricket in 2015, has been part of the coaching staff of many different teams, starting off as a batting consultant for the England team that year. He then replaced Ricky Ponting as the head coach of the Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Mumbai Indians. Under his coaching and Rohit Sharma’s captaincy, MI have won the IPL in 2017, 2019, and 2020.

He has also coached Bangladesh Premier League franchise Khulna Titans and Southampton side for the inaugural edition of The Hundred. In July 2021, he was appointed as the consultant of the Sri Lanka national under-19 cricket team as a part of the 2022 Under-19 Cricket World Cup preparations.

“This is an exciting opportunity to work with the national cricketers and coaches in our various development squads, including the U19 and A Team teams, to help us do justice to the enormous cricketing talent and potential in Sri Lanka. I am very passionate about Sri Lankan cricket and believe that with a coordinated and focused team effort, taking a holistic approach working across all age groups, we can achieve consistent success in the future,” Jayawardena said.

He added: “My main role will be supporting our team of national coaches and support staff in terms of our preparation and strategic-thinking during the coming year.”

He was appointed to the latest role by Sri Lanka Cricket’s Executive Committee in consultation with the Technical Advisory Committee of Sri Lanka Cricket.

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