SL considering foreign coaches

Sri Lanka was considering applications from three “top international cricket coaches”, Sports Minister Harin Fernando said Tuesday amid reports incumbent Chandika Hathurusingha has been asked to quit.

Following Sri Lanka’s disappointing World Cup, where they finished in sixth-place, Hathurusingha and his assistants were expected to be shown the door ahead of the upcoming home series against New Zealand next month.

Fernando said there were three top international coaches willing to replace Hathurusingha, a former Sri Lankan Test player.

The minister said the coach’s remuneration -- $40,000 a month -- was too high, adding: “If we are winning only 35 percent of the games, no need to pay such high fees to coaches.”

Fernando said the international candidates were asking for lower salaries of between $17,500 to $25,000 a month, but did not name them. He suggested Hathurusingha could be retained at a lower salary.

“For the price we are paying now, we can get two foreign coaches,” he said.

“We must renegotiate the high fees we are paying at the moment. If they don’t agree, they can go,” he said.