Vikram Rathour, once India’s opening batter and until recently their batting coach, will link up with Sri Lanka’s men on a consultancy deal that runs until 10 March – two days after the T20 World Cup final in Colombo. He’s due in Colombo on 18 January, giving him four days with the group before a six-match white-ball series against England kicks off.
Sri Lanka Cricket confirmed the move in a brief note on Thursday. “Vikram’s brief is simple: tighten the batting plans in the build-up to a home World Cup,” a board official said. The 55-year-old played six Tests and seven ODIs for India, but his reputation rests on a weighty domestic career for Punjab and a five-year stint as India’s batting coach that ended with their T20 World Cup triumph in 2024.
That background matters. Rathour spent those Indian years under Ravi Shastri and then Rahul Dravid, walking the line between two very different coaching styles. A Royals detour followed – he joined Rajasthan when Dravid took charge there – putting him in weekly conversation with Kumar Sangakkara, now both director of cricket and head coach at the IPL side. Sangakkara’s influence, insiders insist, helped open the Colombo door.
There’s quite a churn around him. Lasith Malinga stays on as consultant bowling coach, though only until the eve of the World Cup. Former India fielding coach R Sridhar has already started a new stint in the same role. Off the field, ex-quick Pramodya Wickramasinghe heads the revamped selection panel, while on it Dasun Shanaka has reclaimed the T20I captaincy from Charith Asalanka.
“I’m looking forward to getting stuck in – there’s real talent here,” Rathour said in the SLC release, keeping it short. Shanaka echoed the sentiment: “Fresh eyes can help us fine-tune quickly.”
For England, who arrive later this month, the timing is interesting. “Facing a side under new management always throws up unknowns,” assistant coach Marcus Trescothick noted on Wednesday. Sri Lanka, though, are banking on continuity rather than revolution. A few tactical tweaks, a lighter dressing-room touch, and Rathour’s calm presence – that, they hope, will be enough to steer an occasionally fragile top order into their own tournament, on their own pitches, with minimum fuss and maximum runs.
