Including youngsters in the national team to groom them for the future may be commonplace but Sri Lanka have decided to go one step ahead — with current coach Trevor Bayliss’s contract expiring after the 2011 World Cup, they have not only already decided on his replacement, they have even ensured that he gets to work with the national team before he formally takes charge.

Former opener Chandika Hathurusingha is not a mere assistant to Bayliss in the present Sri Lankan support staff; he is known as a ‘shadow coach’ in the set up. Team manager Brendon Kuruppu explains: “Shadow coach is a coach-in-waiting. Basically, we are grooming Hathurusingha so that we don’t have to face any problem after Trevor’s exit. He has been coach of the Sri Lanka A side and has worked with all the players in the current side.”

Despite the consistent success of foreign coaches in Sri Lankan cricket — Dav Whatmore, Tom Moody and now Bayliss have all enjoyed a high success rate — the establishment is not obsessed with them. Given that Hathurusingha has been working with grassroots cricket for long, it is not a surprise that Sri Lanka Cricket decided to put him in charge of the national squad.

As coach of the Sri Lanka A team, Hathurusingha has ensured a consistent supply of finished products to the national side. While he is known to do wonders with young cricketers, the seniors in the national team have been his team mates. His association with Muttiah Muralitharan goes back to their days at the Tamil Union Cricket and Athletic Club and, despite his international success, Hathurusingha remains Murali’s bouncing pad for ideas.

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