Sri Lanka has appointed Gary Kirsten as their new men's head coach on a two-year contract, effective from April 15, 2026, with the primary goal of preparing the team for the 2027 ODI World Cup in South Africa, Namibia, and Zimbabwe. Kirsten, a former South African cricketer, brings extensive international coaching experience, having guided India to the 2011 World Cup title and helping South Africa reach the top ranking in all formats in 2013. He replaces Sanath Jayasuriya, who stepped down after Sri Lanka's disappointing T20 World Cup campaign. Gary Kirsten's impressive career includes guiding India to their 2011 World Cup win and elevating South Africa to the top of Test rankings. He recently consulted for Namibia in the T20 World Cup. As a player, Kirsten was a prolific batsman, scoring over 14,000 international runs and becoming South Africa's first centurion in Tests. Gary Kirsten is set to join an illustrious list of non-Sri Lankan coaches who've made a significant impact on the nation's cricketing history. He's following in the footsteps of legends like Dav Whatmore, who led Sri Lanka to their historic 1996 World Cup win, Tom Moody and Trevor Bayliss, who guided the team to World Cup finals in 2007 and 2011, and Chris Silverwood, the most recent foreign head coach before Sanath Jayasuriya took over. Sri Lanka's cricket team has appointed Gary Kirsten as their new head coach, effective April 15, 2026, with a two-year contract until April 14, 2028. This move comes after Sanath Jayasuriya's resignation following the team's disappointing exit from the 2026 T20 World Cup. Kirsten, a former South African cricketer, brings extensive coaching experience, having guided India to the 2011 World Cup title and elevating South Africa to the top ranking in all formats in 2013. Kirsten's primary focus will be preparing Sri Lanka for the 2027 ODI World Cup, co-hosted by South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Namibia. His appointment marks a shift from the previous strategy of hiring local coaches, with Jayasuriya, the former head coach, now expected to lead the High Performance Centre. With the 2027 men's ODI World Cup set to be held in his native South Africa, alongside Namibia and Zimbabwe, Kirsten's intimate knowledge of those conditions would have also likely played a role in his hire, but SLC will be hoping that his impact will be longer lasting and help build a winning culture similar to those he helped established in India and South Africa. With his appointment, Kirsten aims to revive Sri Lanka's cricketing fortunes, focusing on the 2027 ODI World Cup. His experience, including guiding India to the 2011 World Cup title and elevating South Africa to the top ranking in all formats, makes him an ideal fit for the role.