Sri Lanka appoint 1996 World Cup winner Hashan Tillakaratne as senior team batting coach

Former Sri Lanka captain Hashan Tillakaratne has been appointed batting coach of the senior men’s national programme. The 1996 World Cup winner, who scored over 8,300 international runs, will work with players at the National High Performance Center until December 2027

Colombo: Former Sri Lanka captain and 1996 Men’s ODI World Cup winner Hashan Tillakaratne has been appointed as the batting coach of the senior men’s national program, Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) announced on Friday.

The 59-year-old left-handed batter, who scored 8, 334 international runs across 83 Tests and 200 ODIs from 1989 to 2004, officially assumed his new role on August 20. His contract runs till December 31, 2027.

---

“Sri Lanka Cricket wishes to announce the appointment of Hashan Tillakaratne as the batting coach of the senior men’s program. He will be based at the National High Performance Center of the SLC and will work with the national players as part of the Senior Men’s Program.”

“The former World Cup winner previously served as the batting coach of the Sri Lanka men’s national team and the head coach of the Sri Lanka women’s national team. He also has served as the head coach of the Bangladesh Women’s National Team.

“Tillakaratne represented Sri Lanka from 1989 to 2003, playing 83 Test matches and 200 ODIs and accumulating more than 8,200 international runs across the two formats. His appointment came into effect on 20th August 2026 and will continue until 31st December 2027,” said SLC in its statement on Friday.

Tillakaratne brings extensive coaching and administrative experience to the National High-Performance Center setup in Colombo. His finest Test innings came against India in 2001, when he crafted a magnificent unbeaten 136 in the third Test at the Sinhalese Sports Club (SSC) Ground in Colombo, the venue for the second Test between the two teams starting on Sunday.

Following his playing career, in which he captained Sri Lanka in 11 Tests, Tillakaratne served as a national selector and worked with various senior, U-19, and women’s setups and completed a recent coaching stint in the United States of America (USA).