Farbrace to be Sri Lanka coach

7 December 2013 03:39 am

Former Sri Lanka team Assistant coach Paul Farbrace will take over as the next Sri Lanka coach from Graham Ford, after the series against Pakistan in December-January.

Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) Executive Committee ratified his appointment unofficially last evening and decided to call Farbrace for a routine interview, which will take place on Monday at the SLC Headquarters.

“Chief national selector Sanath Jayasuriya has been in touch with Farbrace during past few days and confirmed to the Ex Co that Farbrace will present himself for an interview on Monday,” a source said.

“Farbrace has had discussions with his present employer Yorkshire County Cricket Club and has confirmed that he can take up the job. SLC Ex-Co has also agreed unanimously Farbrace as the best candidate for the job. So, basically it is confirmed and the interview on Monday will basically be to discuss the way forward,” added the source.

There had been initial resistance for Farbrace from some ex-co members who had instead wanted outgoing Pakistan coach Dav Whatmore who coached Sri Lanka to World Cup glory in 1996. But following Jayasuriya’s presentation in support of Farbrace yesterday, the decision had been unanimous.

Former English first class cricketer Farbrace is currently assistant coach to Jason Gillespie at Yorkshire. He had applied for the Sri Lanka job earlier but later withdrew from the race.

Farbrace who was assistant coach with the Sri Lanka team to Trevor Bayliss from 2007, was wounded in the Lahore terrorist attack on the national team and in March 2009 he left the job shortly to join Kent as head coach before taking up his current position at Yorkshire.

Nicknamed "Farbie", he was a talented wicket-keeper and a right-handed batsman who represented Kent from 1987 to 1989 and Middlesex from 1990 to 1995 in 40 first-class matches.

As a coach Farbrace was in charge of England's Under 19 side and the England national women's team in 2000. He was running the Kent Academy, before he was he was appointed as the Sri Lanka assistant coach in July 2007. (Channaka de Silva)