Bangladesh appoint Wasim Jaffer as batting consultant for Sri Lanka tour
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Wasim Jaffer, who is currently a member of the BCB High-Performance Unit, has been appointed as the batting consultant for Bangladesh's tour of Sri Lanka. While Champaka Ramanayake will act as the bowling consultant, Khaled Mahmud may become the team’s temporary head coach for the series.
Bangladesh batting consultant Neil McKenzie and bowling consultant Courtney Walsh decided not to renew their contracts with the BCB after the World Cup debacle and although McKenzie hasn’t cleared his stance fully, he might not join the team again. Keeping an eye on that, BCB decided to appoint Jaffer for the roles.
"We have some plans regarding filling the post of our coaches and it will depend on what type of coaches we are getting," BCB cricket operation chairman Akram Khan said on Monday (July 15).
"Champaka is also a very good bowling coach and we have him as our backup and now we will take him to this tour. Look, some of our coaches had requested for leave during the time of Sri Lanka tour as there was some problem regarding the tour [after the terrorist attack] and only was confirmed in the recent past. If McKenzie is unable to give us time [that is likely to be the case] then we will take Wasim Jaffer as the batting coach. They are not chosen as the replacement of McKenzie or Courtney Walsh. As per the contract with them, they are bound to take additional responsibilities."
After Steve Rhodes' term as head coach has come to a premature end following the team's eighth-place finish at the World Cup, the board has decided that BCB director Khaled Mahmud will helm the side as temporary head coach for the Sri Lanka tour.
"Khaled Mahmud is close to becoming the senior team's temporary coach. The board will confirm the decision in a couple of days," Akram said.
If the appointment goes through, this will be the second time Mahmud will become a director-coach after he took over in a temporary role following Chandika Hathurusingha's resignation in 2017. However, Mahmud is a very active member in Bangladesh cricket circles and has held several roles in the BCB and within Bangladesh cricket, including that of the senior team's manager and selector, vice-chairman of the cricket operations committee, chairman of the game development committee and vice-chairman of the high-performance committee.
