Chandika Hathurusingha now coaching New South Wales

 Pic by Dallas Kilponenen

Stuart sacked as coach of New South Wales

ESPNcricinfo staff: “Stuart sacked ….”

Anthony Stuart has been sacked as coach of New South Wales after a board meeting in Sydney on Tuesday night. Stuart took over as head coach in May 2011 and his two-year contract was due to expire at the end of this season, but Cricket New South Wales has confirmed in a statement that Stuart has finished his coaching duties with the state “with immediate effect”. Chandika Hathurusingha, the former Sri Lanka Test player who was an assistant coach under Stuart, will take over as acting head coach for the rest of the 2012-13 season. Stuart has not had a particularly successful tenure since he took over from Matthew Mott last year; the Blues won only one Sheffield Shield game last summer. This season they were sitting in fourth position with two wins at the time of his departure, and in the Ryobi Cup they had managed only one victory from four games.”At a meeting of the NSW cricket board last evening it was determined that Anthony Stuart’s contract to coach the NSW SpeedBlitz Blues will not be renewed and he has finished duties as head coach with immediate effect,” Cricket New South Wales said in a statement. The chief executive David Gilbert said: “Cricket NSW records its thanks to Anthony for his efforts and commitment over the past 18 months. We wish Anthony well in his future endeavours.”

Stuart, the former fast bowler who took a hat-trick in one of his three ODI appearances for Australia, had been coach of Wellington in New Zealand before he joined New South Wales.

Sharm de Alwis reveals “Sanga’s letter to Sri Lanka Cricket on Chandika Hathurusinghe, 8^th August 2010″

KUMAR SANGAKKARA
Apartment 25 B4, Empire Apartments,
51 Braybrooke Place, Colombo 2
8 August 2010

D.S. de Silva,
Chairman,
Sri Lanka Cricket,
35 Maitland Place,
Colombo 7.

Dear Sir,
Re: Chandika Hathurasingha

I am writing to place before you my honest view on the contribution of Chandika Hathurisinghe to national cricket and his value towards ensuring its sustained success. This is in no way meant to argue or debate the termination of his contract, or the inquiry preceding it, but to simply implore all of you to offer a talented and capable coach of proven ability a second chance to further not only his personal career, but also to enrich the current and future performances of the National Cricket Team, especially with the 2011 World Cup in mind, an event of huge national importance to us all.

It is my firm opinion that Chandika fully possesses the forward-thinking advanced coaching methods that we look for when appointing national level coaches. It was a refreshing change to see a local coach whose technical and strategic knowledge was second to none of the foreign coaches I have worked with before. His stint with the A team was probably the most productive season in the team’s history. His no-nonsense approach and his local insight contributed to the success of that side in alien conditions like South Africa where they experienced unprecedented success. These performances and the feedback from the A team players precipitated Murali and I after mutual discussions to request Chandika’s addition to the national coaching staff. The chairman of the interim committee with his experience and foresight graciously granted this request.

Since joining us Chandika’s contribution to our cause has been even more than we expected. I have experienced first-hand his expertise in batting technique. The bowlers have benefitted greatly from his sound technical advice. His greatest influence had been in the way he conditions the team mentally to be prepared to meet and win any and all challenges and his input concerning overall strategy. His approach is always positive and strong. He accepts no softness or lack of commitment and discipline and he treats all players with an even and fair hand. This has earned him the fullest respect of all the players. He is creative in his thinking and is always geared towards winning. This positive outlook has helped us view challenges as tests of skill to be enjoyed. His calm aura of control has helped at all times to keep calm an excitable dressing room so that decisions are made rationally. He has also proved instrumental in improving the ability of players like Thilina Kandamby, Upul Tharanga, Tharanga Paranawithana, Suranga Lakmal, Dinesh Dharshanapriya and myself among many others. In the last year he has out-worked, out-thought and out-shone the foreign coaching staff within the system.

I am writing this to put before you in an impersonal and objective manner the value Chandika has added to the national cause. This contains not only my personal point of view but the opinions of the whole squad of national players both senior and new who respect and admire him for the work done. My interest in regaining the services of Chandika is purely selfish. I want to be a part of team coached by the best and Chandika is without doubt a fine coach. I firmly believe that after the 2011 World Cup he has the capability to ably head the coaching of the national team into the future supported by Champaka Ramanayake, Ruwan Kalpage and others. I also believe that having Chandika in our coaching team considerably enhances our chances in the 2011 World Cup.

In closing, I wish to humbly request that you find it in your hearts to give Chandika a second chance to work with us. If you are able to accommodate this I believe that it will be a rich legacy that you leave behind when your tenure as the honoured guardians of this wonderful sport ends. It will be the foundation to a rich, professional and able and completely Sri Lankan coaching pathway that will easily match the expertise sought after all over the world.

I would be grateful if you could forward copies of this letter to your fellow Interim Committee members for discussion at the next IC Meeting.

Yours sincerely,
Kumar Sangakkara

Copies sent to:
Nishantha Ranatunga – Secretary
Other Interim Committee Members (for distribution by the Chairman)

****

Upul Chandika Hathurusingha (born September 13, 1968) is a former Sri Lankan cricketer who is the current coach of New South Wales in Australian domestic cricket, having previously coached the United Arab Emirates and Sri Lanka A. A right-handed all-rounder who bowled medium-fast, Hathurusingha played 26 Tests and 35 One Day Internationals for the Sri Lankan national cricket team, and also had a successful domestic career for Tamil Union Cricket and Athletic Club and Moors Sports Club. An opening batsman, Hathurusingha was most often one of the opening batsmen alongside Roshan Mahanama.
A useful pace-bowler, Hathurusingha was not called into the Test side until an injury to Mahanama stopped him from playing. Hathurusingha started his career by piecing together a trio of half-centuries in his  first three matches. After a long layoff from the side when other  players took over in the opening batsman position, and the subsequent discovery of Sanath Jayasuriya
in just that position, Hathurusingha began to play once again, but this time as a strong middle-order batsman and medium-pace bowler. This was not to prove overly effective, though, and when Hathurusingha was not called upon to play in the Cricket World Cup in 1999, this brought about an end to his international career. He played once again in the Premier Tournament and became Player of the Tournament three seasons running (2001–02, 2002–03, 2003–04). His  Twenty-20 career began in 2005-06.

Coaching career: Having retired from first-class cricket at the end of the 2004–05 season, and Twenty20 cricket at the end of the following season, Hathurusingha was appointed coach of the United Arab Emirates in December 2005 on a one-year contract.^[1] Following the completion of this contract, he was named coach of Sri Lanka A on a three-year contract with Sri Lanka Cricket.^[2] In 2009, Hathurusingha was named senior assistant to Sri Lanka’s national coach, Trevor Bayliss, but he was fired in June 2010 due to disciplinary reasons.^[3] Despite a request for him to be retained from Kumar Sangakkara, the national team’s captain at the time, Hathurusingha was not reappointed to the position, and subsequently obtained permanent residency in Australia.^[4] He was a coaching consultant for the Canadian national cricket team at the 2011 World Cup,^[5] and was subsequently appointed assistant coach of New South Wales in September 2011, on a two-year contract.^[6] When senior coach Anthony Stuart was dismissed from the position in December 2012, midway through the 2012–13 season, Hathurusingha was named acting coach for the remainder
of the season.^[7]

ALSO SEE http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/sport/cricket/sangakkara-praise-for-nsw-hire-20110915-1kbyq.html