Sri Lanka hires Samaraweera as batting coach

COLOMBO:  Sri Lanka Sunday announced it was contracting former Test batsman Thilan Samaraweera as the batting coach to groom the national team in the run up to the 2019 World Cup.

The 41-year-old Samaraweera, who retired from Test cricket in 2013, had been a batting consultant for the Bangladesh team, Sri Lanka Cricket said in a statement.

"SLC announces today the recruitment of former Sri Lankan right hand batsman Thilan Samaraweera as batting coach to the national team for a period of three years," it said.

Samaraweera is due to join the Sri Lanka squad before they leave for India later this week to play three Tests, three one-day internationals and three Twenty20 games.

Sri Lanka currently has an interim head coach -- South African Nic Pothas -- who took the place of Graham Ford after he quit in June, midway through a 45-month contract.

Sri Lanka has had a dismal record recently losing all nine international games during a home series against India between July and September.

They won a two-match Test series against Pakistan, but lost all five one-day internationals and the three T20 matches last month.