Former Sri Lankan cricketer Thilan Samaraweera has been roped in by Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) as a batting consultant, which becomes their second big signing after appointing West Indian fast bowler Courtney Walsh as the bowling coach. The two big moves ahead of a busy season ahead will definitely boost their morale.
The Asian team is scheduled to play an International match against Afghanistan, which is going to be their first competitive game after the ICC World T20. England would pay a visit to their country for a 3-match ODI series along with 2 Tests.
As per the reports from espncricinfo.com, Nazmul Hassan, the president of BCB said, “Thilan Samaraweera, the batting specialist, has been hired for the England series as a consultant. We will see if we want to extend him. We are still looking for a spin bowling coach. [We will] get the best among those available. We hope to appoint one before the New Zealand series.”
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Thilan Samaraweera was a played a pivoted a pivotal role in the Sri Lankan batting order in Test matches, having played as many as 81 Tests with an impressive average of 48.76 which includes 14 centuries with a top score of 231 against Pakistan in Karachi.
On the other side of the coin, Courtney Walsh was an equally successful bowler for the West Indies and once held the record for the most wickets taken in Test matches with 519 scalps to his name. Along with Curtly Ambrose, they formed one of the greatest fast bowling pairs the world has ever seen.
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After being officially announced as the bowling coach for Bangladesh, Walsh expressed his feelings about the new job saying he was ‘thrilled’. He said, “I’m thrilled to be joining the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) as their specialist bowling coach. Having watched Bangladesh cricket from afar over the years, they are a seriously talented bunch of players. Chandika Hathurusingha has done a wonderful job as the coach so hopefully I can complement his skills and continue the positive progress.”
The last time England and Bangladesh met in an International match was during the 2015 ICC Cricket World Cup, which was a very significant one in the history of Bangladesh Cricket. The minnows defeated the ‘Three Lions’ and qualified for the quarter-finals for the first time in a major tournament, while the Europeans were shown the door.
The first Test match between the two nations is scheduled to be played on 7th October later this year.
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