Four coaches to work with Sri Lanka men's team on 'rotational basis'

Sri Lanka Cricket has stated that the appointment of coaches Julian Wood and Rene Ferdinands will have no effect on the roles of Thilina Kandamby and Piyal Wijetunge. The board also announced that the coaches will operate with the men's team on a 'rotational basis'.

SLC's CEO Ashley de Silva remarked that the coaching staff for each series will be decided by the management. The head coach and a 'few other members' will be exempted from the rotation policy.

"Across the board, there are national teams, no? So, on a rotational basis, tour by tour, we will decide who will be joining the teams. That's how the high-performance centre operates now. That does not mean each person would only work with a particular team. Other than the head coach and a few other members, the rest of them would be rotated," stated de Silva, as quoted by ESPNcricinfo.

Wood was brought on board on a contract spanning one year after a week-long power-hitting programme with the men's and women's squads. The players from both squads have been impressed with his coaching methods. Ferdinands, on the other hand, is a biomechanics expert and has also worked with the BCCI's National Cricket Academy.

Speaking of Kandamby, he has been Sri Lanka's batting coach since December 2023. Wijetunge has been the oldest fixture. He has been Sri Lanka's spin-bowling coach since February 2006. The two were recently under the pump after Sri Lanka's T20I series defeat to Bangladesh.

De Silva further elaborated on how the coaches will be expected to work as per the management. He remarked that the executive committee of the SLC will be deciding which coach will go on a particular tour.  

"They work in the organisation, [it is] not that their contracts have been terminated. It doesn't matter wherever they have been assigned; they should be prepared to work. Even they [Wood and Ferdinands] have been designated the same way, so they would be working across the board. Depending on the tours, we, the ExCo [executive committee] will decide who should go on tour," de Silva added.

Sri Lanka's last assignment was the Asia Cup 2025. They will be taking part in a three-match ODI series against Pakistan. After the bilateral series, they will be a part of the T20I tri-series there involving Zimbabwe.