Chandika Hathurusingha was appointed as the new head coach of the men’s national team by the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) on Tuesday.
The BCB announced a two-year deal beginning this month not long after Cricket New South Wales disclosed that Hathurusingha had severed ways with them. With S Sriram also present and in command of the T20I team, it is not yet certain which formats Hathurusingha would supervise. In December of last year, the board expressed its desire to make Sriram the permanent T20I head coach. Hathurusingha may only be associated with the Test and ODI groups if that holds true.
The two-year agreement with Hathurusingha
After negotiating a two-year contract, Hathurusingha is taking over for Russell Domingo, who stepped down at the end of 2022. In a statement, Hathurusingha remarked, “It’s an honor to have been given this opportunity to coach the Bangladesh national team once again.” “I really loved the warmth of the people and the culture of Bangladesh. I’m looking forward to working with the players once again and enjoying their successes,” he added.
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Hathurusingha resigned as the assistant coach for New South Wales, but his reappointment as the Bangladesh coach was strongly anticipated.
A chance of greater success for the Bangladesh cricket team?
Hathurusingha will be taking over as head coach of the national men’s team for a second time. Prior to this, from 2014 to 2017, he served as the Tigers’ head coach. During his time as coach, Bangladesh won three consecutive ODI series at home, defeating Pakistan, India, and South Africa. The team under Hathurusingha also advanced to the ICC tournament knockout rounds at the ODI World Cup in 2015 and the Champions Trophy in 2017. The Tigers also won their first Test matches against England, Australia, and Sri Lanka.
Bangladesh won 40.20 percent of their 102 total matches in all formats when Hathurusingha was the coach. That’s lower than the records set by his predecessors, former players Steve Rhodes (51.11 points) and Russell Domingo (42.34 points).
“Chandika’s experience and knowledge of Bangladesh cricket will be an advantage for him and will benefit the players,” said BCB chief executive Nizamuddin Chowdhury. “He is a proven tactician and we have seen his impact on the national team during his first assignment,” he remarked.
Bangladesh’s current losing streak in all formats is something Hathurusingha hopes to end. At the end of the World Test Championship, they are unfortunately at the bottom. They are currently ranked sixth in the ICC CWCSL standings and did not advance to the semifinals of the 2022 T20 World Cup in Australia. As this year’s Cricket World Cup is being held in India, Hathurusingha plans to focus mostly on the 50-over format.
