Chandika Hathurusingha appointed NSW Assistant Coach

Cricket NSW has appointed former Sri Lankan batsman Chandika Hathurusingha as the NSW Assistant Coach for the next two years.

Hathurusingha played 26 Test matches for Sri Lanka between 1991 and 1999, scoring 1274 runs at an average of 29.62, with a highest score of 83. He was also a handy right-arm medium pace bowler who took 17 Test wickets including the wickets of David Boon, Dean Jones, Mark Waugh and Allan Border in one session during the famous 1992 Test match in Colombo in which Sri Lanka collapsed to be all out for 164, chasing 181 to win.

Hathurusingha has devoted himself to coaching since his retirement from playing in 2005. He was Head Coach of the Sri Lanka A side between 2006 and 2009 before being appointed Assistant Coach of the national team under Trevor Bayliss between 2009 and 2010.

He will now work closely with RTA SpeedBlitz Blues Head Coach Anthony Stuart, in addition to looking after the NSW 2nd XI and Futures League teams.

Hathurusingha expressed delight at his appointment: “I am really excited and grateful  to be offered this position. NSW has a tremendous history and tradition around the cricketing world and I’m looking forward to working closely with Anthony Stuart and a talented squad of players. I hope that my experience of working with Sri Lanka over the past few years will enable me to bring fresh ideas to the role.”