Mahela Jayawardene to step down as Southern Brave head coach following global role with Mumbai Indians

Former Sri Lankan cricketer Mahela Jayawardene is set to leave as head coach of Southern Brave in the Hundred tournament. Under Jayawardene's coaching, the franchise lifted a title in 2021, however, the franchise ended up at the seventh position with just three wins in eight games in 2022. 

Jayawardene has not left officially, however, he has spoken with the management about it, as per an ESPNcricinfo report. The increased responsibilities after his recent promotion with the Mumbai Indians has been specified as the reason and Southern Brave are in the hunt for a new replacement.  

Notably, Jayawardene has been the head coach of the Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League since 2017 and has managed to take the side to three titles. His successful stints had earned him a promotion in the Mumbai setup as he was promoted to a global role, with the MI ownership expanding outside IPL. The Mumbai Indians are owners of MI Emirates in the ILT20 League and the MI Cape Town in the SA20.  

Jayawardene was named the global head of performance for the entire franchises associated with the Mumbai Indians. The former batter will administer the coaching and scouting at all the three teams in his new role. Following his promotion, Jayawardene stepped down as Mumbai Indians' head coach, with Mark Boucher replacing him for the upcoming edition in 2023.  

“It is an honour and privilege to be appointed as Head Coach of MI. Their history and achievements as a franchise clearly put them up there as one of the most successful sporting franchises in all of world sport. I look forward to the challenge and respect the need for results. It’s a strong unit with great leadership and players. I look forward to adding value to this dynamic unit,” told Boucher after taking up the head coach role.