Sri Lankan team trying to persuade Jayawardene to take U-19 job

Former Sri Lanka captain Arvind de Silva has said that Sri Lankan Cricket (SLC) is trying to persuade Mahela Jayawardene to become the coach of the Under-19 team. He said the appointment of Rahul Dravid as the head coach of the U-19 team has done wonders for India.
Well, I think when he was appointed as the Under-19 coach, I thought India did a good job,” de Silva said during a virtual press conference. Sri Lanka had been trying for a long time to persuade Mahela Jayawardene to take up the job of U-19, but I have not been so successful in doing so.

He further added, I think this is where the foundation lies and if you lay the foundation at the under-19 level, it becomes so much easier to actually progress from there. That’s where I think you’ll be able to establish knowledge. This is where you can really express yourself; Once you lay a foundation with someone like Rahul, you all know that he is a very disciplined person.
De Silva talks about the rumors of Angelo Mathews retiring from international cricket. The all-rounder is not part of the India-Sri Lanka white-ball series due to personal reasons.

De Silva concluded that it was a pity if Angelo Mathews decided to leave at this stage. I see him as someone who has contributed a lot to Sri Lankan cricket. I don’t want any senior member to leave the team like this. It is time for the players to put these issues aside and look to the future. There are a lot of things that he can give to Sri Lanka and he should have shown that kind of spirit, character and he should have handled the situation in a manly manner.

A young Indian team under the captaincy of Shikhar Dhawan will begin their white-ball tour of Sri Lanka with a three-match ODI series starting July 13.