Reports: Mahela Jayawardene to serve as Sri Lanka's consultant coach in T20 World Cup qualifiers

Former Sri Lankan skipper and Mumbai Indians head coach Mahela Jayawardene will join the national team as a consultant coach for the upcoming T20 World Cup qualifiers.

The former cricketer will also overlook the Sri Lankan U-19 team for a period of five months to help them prepare for the ICC World Cup, which is set to take place in the West Indies next year.

Veteran Sri Lankan journalist Rex Clementine revealed the same on his Twitter account. He wrote:

"Mahela Jayawardene is joining the Sri Lankan cricket team as a consultant during the T20 World Cup qualifiers. He will also work as a consultant for a period of five months with the Sri Lanka Under-19 team. His stint with the Under-19 side will be on an honorary basis.’’

Jayawardene is one of the most successful coaches in the T20 arena. The stylish batsman has led the Mumbai Indians to three IPL titles since taking over the coaching duties of the franchise back in 2017. He also coached the Southern Brave to title glory in the inaugural season of ‘The Hundred’ earlier this year.

Will Sri Lanka benefit from Mahela Jayawardene's presence in the T20 World Cup?

Meanwhile, Sri Lanka will be involved in the qualifying round of the T20 World Cup for the first time in their history as the former champions failed to earn automatic qualification.

The 2014 T20 World Cup winners have been placed in Group A alongside the Netherlands, Ireland and host Oman. They will open their campaign against Namibia in Abu Dhabi on October 18.

Before the qualifiers, the island nation will play a couple of T20Is against Oman. The two matches will take place in Al Amerat on October 7 and 9.

Sri Lanka picked up a much-needed series win against a depleted Indian team back in July. However, they failed to cash in on their momentum against South Africa earlier this month and were handed a 3-0 mauling on home turf.

The Dasun Shanaka-led unit will look to hit the ground running from the very first game in order to avoid the embarrassment of not qualifying for the main draw.

As for Jayawardene, the former cricketer was offered a full-time coaching stint by Sri Lankan Cricket some time back but he declined the offer. Jayawardene’s tactical acumen and his vast experience will certainly benefit the young Lankan cricketers at a high-pressure event.