Graham Ford leaves Surrey to coach Sri Lanka

Graham Ford has ended a two-year spell with Surrey and is leaving the county to return to the Sri Lanka national team. The 55-year-old South African had left his role as Sri Lanka coach in 2014 to take charge at The Oval. In 2015, he led Surrey to promotion from County Championship Division Two and to the final of the One-Day Cup, where they lost to Gloucestershire. Ford, who has also worked for Kent and South Africa, was shortlisted for the England coach’s job in 2009, with that role eventually going to Andy Flower.

Ford, who is set to begin his second stint as Sri Lanka’s new head coach, is understood to have signed on until the end of the 2019 World Cup, and is expected to begin work with Sri Lanka in the coming weeks – possibly even in early February.

Ford’s appointment will end a five-month search for a head coach, following Marvan Atapattu’s resignation from the position in early September. SLC’s interim committee had approached both Ford and Bangladesh coach Chandika Hathurusinghe in the intervening months, but both men had had reservations about taking the job at a time of administrative upheaval.

Ford had already coached Sri Lanka for two years, beginning in early 2012. He had been linked to the Sri Lanka job since the middle of 2015 but had declined to resume the role ahead of the SLC election in January. The election of a new board in January and the defeat of the Nishantha Ranatunga-led faction in those elections helped pave the way for Ford’s return. Ford had cited family reasons for his departure from the Sri Lanka job in 2014 but is understood to have had issues with Sri Lanka Cricket, at the time.

His reputation for being good with young players had been among the reasons the new board offered Ford the job, as the national team continues its transition following high-profile retirements. Ford is highly rated by Sri Lanka players, and the feeling had been mutual. He had spoken of his first stint as being “very, very special” ahead of his final Test in charge, in 2014.