Jamie Siddons appointed as new head coach of Sri Lanka women’s team

New Delhi, March 5 (IANS) Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) has appointed former Australian cricketer Jamie Siddons as head coach of the senior women team, the board announced on Thursday. Siddons previously coached the Bangladesh senior men team from 2007 to 2011.

Sri Lanka were previously coached by former men’s player Rumesh Ratnayake. “His one-year appointment will come into effect on 16 March 2026. His first assignment will be Sri Lanka Women’s Tour of Bangladesh, scheduled to take place in April–May 2026,” said the SLC in its statement.

Siddons is a Level 3 qualified coach who captained both South Australia and Victoria during an extensive first-class career. He played just one ODI for Australia - making 32 in a one-day match in Lahore in 1988.

He also held head coaching positions at South Australia Redbacks team from 2015 to 2020 and the Wellington Firebirds in New Zealand from 2011 to 2015. Siddons was also an assistant coach of the Australian team after being appointed as a senior coach at the Centre of Excellence (CoE) ahead of the 2005 Ashes.

His first major step will be to prepare Sri Lanka for the 2026 ICC Women T20 World Cup scheduled to be held in England from June 12 to July 5. Sri Lanka are coming off winning the ODI series against the West Indies by 2-1 before grabbing a 2-0 T20I series win, after the first match ended in a no result.

In the showpiece event, Sri Lanka campaign in Group 2 will open against hosts and 2009 champions England in a day-night game in Birmingham on June 12. Four days later, they will take on New Zealand in Southampton on June 16.

After playing back-to-back matches in Bristol against the West Indies on June 21 and Ireland on June 23, Sri Lanka will close out their group stage campaign against Scotland in a day-night fixture in Manchester on June 26.

--IANS

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