Newly appointed Head Coach of the national cricket team, Chandika Hathurusingha says he is looking forward to taking the services of former players and a sports psychologist in order to improve the status of Sri Lanka cricket.

 

"I will get Kumar Sangakkara's expertise and invite him to come and help us. If I don't look for his help, then I will be wasting this opportunity I've been given," Hathurusingha said to the media, following a prolonged training session with a pool of 23 players, some of whom will be travelling to Bangladesh next month.

 

"Not only him, but other past players such as Mahela Jayawardene and Muttiah Muralitharan will also hopefully be working with us. We will definitely try and get as much expertise out of them. Whenever they have the time, and depending on what our needs are, we will definitely be utilizing them as a resource."

 

Hathurusingha has recommended the services of Australian Sports Psychologist Dr. Phil Johnsy, who has been working with him for the past 4 years.

 

"I met him while I was working with [BBL franchise] Sydney Thunder. I was introduced to him by Michael Hussey, who was using him as his personal psychologist. I will be hoping to bring him down from time to time, maybe four times a year depending on the availability of our time, so that we can utilize his time productively".

 

Johnsy will be holding his first session with the team on the January 3 and will be with them for ten days. Depending on availability, it is also a possibility he may accompany the team on some tours.