Sri Lanka head coach Chandika Hathurusingha in action during a practice session during the World Cup (File Photo/Reuters)Sri Lanka became the fifth team to have shown their head coach the door since their exit from the World Cup. Head coach Chandika Hathurusingha has been “suspended” and a new temporary replacement has been appointed for the upcoming New Zealand series, Sri Lanka cricket board chairman Shammi Silva was quoted as saying by AFP on Wednesday.
“Hathurusingha will not be involved in this (New Zealand) series,” Silva told reporters in Colombo. “We can’t tell you details because this might end up being a legal issue,” he added.
Sri Lanka Cricket officially confirms that head coach Chandika Hathurusinghe will not be part of NZ tour. SLC President says Hathurusinghe has been given 14 days to respond to a explanation letter “We made some mistakes when recruiting him, we need to correct it” he says.
— Azzam Ameen (@AzzamAmeen) August 7, 2019
Steve Rhodes (Bangladesh), Mickey Arthur (Pakistan), Otis Gibson (South Africa) and Phil Simmons (Afghanistan) are four other coaches who have already been shown the door by their respective cricket boards after failing to reach the World Cup knockout stages.
Sri Lanka finished at sixth spot after the World Cup group stages.
Meanwhile, Sri Lanka also announced a 22-man squad for the upcoming Test series against New Zealand, which will eventually be pruned to a squad of 15.
Sri Lanka squad for New Zealand Test Series #SLvNZ pic.twitter.com/eBgnI3lBGe
— Sri Lanka Cricket 🇱🇰 (@OfficialSLC) August 7, 2019
The first Test between Sri Lanka and New Zealand will be played in Galle starting August 14, and the second will begin on August 22 at Colombo’s P Sara Stadium. Three T20s, all in Kandy, will be played on August 31, September 2 and September 6.
