Mahela Jayawardene likely to be appointed as consultant of Sri Lanka U19 team

Sri Lankan cricket is in a total mess. After their abject surrender against England in the limited-overs series, the fans, experts and critics have come hard on the players and also on the management. Things got a bit worse when three of the players got suspended after breaching the bubble in England.

But all is not lost if speculations are to be believed, then former Sri Lankan skipper Mahela Jayawardene is tipped to take over as consultant for the Under-19 team. Apparently, the former player has shown keen interest in this role and is tipped to come onboard from October 2021. This news definitely comes as a shot in the arm for the Lankan team, who are in desperate need of revival.

Jayawardene will not only instill discipline at the Under-19 level but also will be instrumental in making the players match ready to play at the international level. India is the best example in this regard as to how well they managed to produce quality players relentlessly by having Rahul Dravid at the Under-19 level. Sri Lanka can definitely take a leaf out of the book and Jayawardene is perfect for this role.

“We (SLC) are not aware of such a move. The move would have been made by the Technical Committee (headed by Aravinda de Silva),” a senior SLC ex-co official told Sri Lankan website themorning.lk.

Sri Lanka yet to win U19 World Cup

With the ICC U19 World Cup all set to take place in the West Indies next year in 2022, Mahela’s appointment will be a big thing in Sri Lankan cricket. The 14th edition of the limited-overs tournament will be held for the first time in the Caribbean Islands with Bangladesh entering the competition as the defending champions.

A total of 16 teams will take part in the tournament with 11 teams already qualified for the event after finishing in the top-11 in the previous edition. West Indies, Afghanistan, Australia, Bangladesh, England, India, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe have already qualified for the tournament. Other teams will be qualified via regional qualification.

Sri Lanka is yet to win the competition in the tournament history and the youth side is all set to play Asia Cup and two bilateral series against England and India this year. If Mahela joins the team as a consultant, we can expect him to turn the tables for the youth side.