The Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) Transformation Committee has announced a series of cricket development initiatives aimed at improving coaching, umpiring, pitch preparation and player development across the country.
Speaking at the committee’s monthly media briefing, Cricket Committee Chairman Sidath Wettimuny said the committee has prioritised three key areas in recent weeks — coaching, curating and umpiring standards.
As part of the reforms, Sri Lanka Cricket has recruited two umpire coaches to improve officiating standards from school cricket to first-class level. The programme is scheduled to commence on Aug. 1 and will also include the appointment of an umpire manager to oversee the development programme.
Wettimuny said a curator manager has also been appointed to supervise the preparation of pitches at international venues while providing technical support to club and school grounds where required.
He said improving coaching standards remains one of the committee’s highest priorities, with discussions underway to bring internationally renowned coach educator Ashley Ross to Sri Lanka to implement a two-year coach education programme.
The programme is expected to align coaching standards from the national high-performance setup to provincial and district levels.
Wettimuny said renowned sports physiotherapist Alex Kountouris, who recently concluded his role with the Australian men’s cricket team, had already spent a week in Sri Lanka reviewing the country’s physiotherapy, strength and conditioning, sports medicine and physical training programmes.
He said Kountouris has helped realign those departments and will continue to provide support remotely throughout the programme.
The committee is also considering replacing the current Under-23 tournament with an Under-21 competition to better support talented school cricketers transitioning into senior cricket.
Wettimuny said many promising players are lost between the ages of 17 and 22 after leaving school cricket, and an Under-21 competition would allow Sri Lanka Cricket to better identify and develop future national players.
The committee also said it is expanding its focus on women’s cricket, with greater emphasis on player welfare, management structures and long-term player development.
In addition, Sri Lanka Cricket is exploring the introduction of a new player monitoring system to better track workloads and performance, particularly among fast bowlers.
Wettimuny said the committee’s overall objective is to establish sustainable development pathways that will strengthen Sri Lanka’s talent pipeline and ensure promising players are nurtured from junior cricket through to the national level. (Newswire)