ENG vs SL: Sri Lanka appoint Ian Bell as batting coach for England test series

Ian Bell played 118 tests and amassed 7727 runs for the England cricket team.

Sri Lanka have appointed former England batsman Ian Bell as their batting coach for the upcoming test tour of England. Both nations are set to play a three-match test series, starting on August 21. Bell will join the Sri Lankan team on August 16 and will be with them until the conclusion of the series.

Since his retirement in 2020, Bell has worked with several teams as a coach. The former cricketer previously worked as the batting coach of the England men’s U-19 and England Lions teams. Bell was also the assistant coach at the Hobart Hurricanes and the consultant batting coach at Derbyshire.

During the ICC ODI World Cup 2023, Bell was associated with the New Zealand cricket team as a consultant. Recently, the 42-year-old worked as an assistant coach at the Melbourne Renegades in the Big Bash League and at the Birmingham Phoenix in the Men’s Hundred.

Sri Lanka Cricket CEO Ashely De Silva reacts to Bell’s appointment

Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) CEO Ashely De Silva stated that Bell will bring important insights about the English conditions.

“We appointed Ian to bring in a person with local knowledge to help the players with key insights on the conditions there. Ian has a lot of experience playing in England, and we believe his inputs will help our team in this crucial tour,” SLC CEO Ashley De Silva said.

Bell represented England from 2004-2015. The right-handed batter played 118 tests and amassed 7727 runs at an average of 42.69. The Englishmen notched up 22 centuries and 46 half-centuries in his test career.

The three-match test series between England and Sri Lanka will be part of the ongoing ICC World Test Championship (WTC) 2023-25 cycle. Sri Lanka are placed fourth and England are ranked sixth in the standings.

Sri Lanka’s Tour of England 2024: Full Schedule

1st Test: 21-25 August 2024, Emirates Old Trafford, Manchester

2nd Test: 29 August-2 September 2024, Lord’s Cricket Ground, London

3rd Test: 6-10 September 2024, Kia Oval, London

England and Sri Lanka squads for the three-match test series:

England: Ben Stokes (Captain), Gus Atkinson, Shoaib Bashir, Harry Brook, Jordan Cox, Ben Duckett, Dan Lawrence, Ollie Pope, Matthew Potts, Joe Root, Jamie Smith, Olly Stone, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood.

Sri Lanka: Dhananjaya De Silva (Captain), Dimuth Karunaratne, Nishan Madushka, Pathum Nissanka, Kusal Mendis (Vice Captain), Angelo Mathews, Dinesh Chandimal, Kamindu Mendis, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Asitha Fernando, Vishwa Fernando, Kasun Rajitha, Lahiru Kumara, Nisala Tharaka, Prabath Jayasuriya, Ramesh Mendis, Jeffrey Vandersay, Milan Rathnayake

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