Australian cricket team is on the right track as far as preparing for the upcoming tour of Sri Lanka is concerned. The Kangaroos have roped in former Sri Lankan Test batsman Thilan Samaraweera as batting consultant to help Australians prepare better for the tough tour.
Samaraweera is currently at the National Cricket Centre in Brisbane, helping the likes of Shaun Marsh, Adam Voges and Jackson Bird for the tour. It is believed that he has been hired for the time period of June to August and this is the reason why he would not be accompanying Australia when they tour Sri Lanka in July. His expertise would be used by the Australian ‘A’ side as well, reported a cricket website.
Earlier, Samaraweera also worked with Australia’s Under 19 squad to prepare for the World Cup in Bangladesh. Australia, however, pulled out of the tournament citing security reasons.
While speaking to a cricket website, said, “At the moment I’m involved with the National Cricket Academy in Brisbane,” Samaraweera said. “I’m working with a few Test players who are not involved in that West Indies tri-series. They are just coming here to train.” Marsh further added, “I’ve had a hit on the spin wicket here and it’s very good – very similar to what you get on the subcontinent and it was a challenging net session. Samaraweera was throwing a few offies as well, and it’s been really good to chat to him and get a bit of an insight into the sort of conditions we’ll be facing in the next couple of months. He’s been helping with advice on how to play spin; he’s good to chat about that with.”
Australian cricket team’s habit of hiring coaches as per local conditions is not new. They had roped in Indias’s S Sriram before arriving to the India tour in 2015.
