Sri Lanka coach wants to discuss future after T20WC campaign
Sanath Jayasuriya is keen to finish up in his role as Sri Lanka coach as the island nation deals with the fallout from their disappointing T20 World Cup.
Sri Lanka coach Sanath Jayasuriya plans to sit down with officials and discuss his future as the co-hosts deal with the completion of their disappointing campaign at the ICC Men's T20 World Cup.
Sri Lanka missed out on qualifying for the knockout stages for the ongoing T20 World Cup, with the island nation condemned to a third straight loss during the Super Eights phase when defeated by Pakistan by three runs in Pallekele on Saturday.
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Jayasuriya fronted the media after the loss to Pakistan and the Sri Lankan great revealed he plans to speak with team hierarchy to discuss his role ahead of the next batch of international fixtures.
"I thought it was time to give it to someone else," Jayasuriya said.
"That's why about two months ago I'd said during the England series that I don't have hopes of staying in the job for long. I'd taken this decision by then. I thought I'd be able to leave as coach on a good note in the World Cup. I wasn't able to do that as well as I'd like, and I'm sad about that."
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Jayasuriya took over as Sri Lanka coach shortly after the 2024 edition of the T20 World Cup, with the former skipper confirming his preference to leave the role early despite his contract scheduled to finish in June this year.
Sri Lanka had managed triumphs from three of their four matches during the initial group stage at the T20 World Cup, but injuries to key duo Wanindu Hasaranga and Matheesha Pathirana derailed their campaign prior to their winless three matches in the Super Eights.
"I think we would have done better for sure," Jayasuria continued.
"And since we played in Sri Lanka, we had a lot of opportunities to be in the semi-finals. But unfortunately, we are not there. A hundred percent, I feel that we should have done better.
"Yeah because of the inconsistent about some of the games batting, Some of the games was bowling. So if you want to win quite a few games, you need to click the batting and the bowling, both departments, to click really well. Unfortunately, it was not consistent, so that was the key. So we need to be consistent on every department."
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While results at this year's T20 World Cup have been below what Sri Lanka expected, Jayasuriya believes he has achieved plenty during his time in charge.
"Over the last one-and-a-half years I was able to bring the team from where we were. In ODIs we were ranked eighth or ninth and we didn't even qualify for a Champions Trophy," he noted.
"But I was able to bring us to No. 4. I've brought the Test team to No.6, and the T20 team is also sixth or seventh (eighth).
"I didn't do it alone. My support staff gave me incredible assistance. From day one I asked them to help me, because I didn't have a lot of experience as a coach. But I was able to manage it because of the cricket I'd played."
