Former Pakistan Head Coach Joins Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka Cricket has officially confirmed the appointment of South African legend Gary Kirsten as the new head coach of the national team, following Sanath Jayasuriya’s resignation after the 2026 ICC T20 World Cup.

Kirsten has signed a two-year contract, with his tenure set to begin on April 15.

The 58-year-old is widely recognized for his successful coaching career with both India and South Africa. He guided India to a historic victory in the 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup and later served as South Africa’s head coach from 2011 to 2013. During that period, South Africa rose to the number-one ranking in all three formats in 2013.

Most recently, Kirsten worked as a consultant for Namibia during the 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup.

His appointment marks a return to the international coaching circuit after a brief and challenging stint with Pakistan. Gary Kirsten was appointed by the Pakistan Cricket Board on a two-year contract in April 2024.

However, he resigned in October 2024 after just one major assignment: the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 in the West Indies and the United States. Pakistan suffered an early group-stage exit in that tournament following defeats to arch-rivals India and the United States.

Before moving into coaching, Kirsten had a distinguished playing career for South Africa between 1993 and 2004. During that time, he scored more than 14,000 international runs, including 21 Test centuries and 13 centuries in One Day Internationals.

His main objective with Sri Lanka will be to prepare and lead the team through to the 2027 ICC Cricket World Cup, which is scheduled to be co-hosted by South Africa, Namibia, and Zimbabwe.

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