Australian Cricketer Jamie Siddons Appointed Sri Lanka Women's Head Coach

Jamie Siddons, a former Australian cricketer, has been appointed as the head coach of the Sri Lanka women's national cricket team for a year, effective March 16, 2026. He'll lead the team in preparation for the ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2026 in England and his first assignment will be the Sri Lanka Women's tour of Bangladesh in April-May 2026. While they remain a notch below top tier sides such as Australia and India in terms of consistency, under his guidance, Sri Lanka secured their best-ever return - a historic Asia Cup title in 2024, defeating India in the final. The Sri Lanka women's cricket team showed inconsistency during the 2024 T20 World Cup, exiting the group stage without a win. Despite series wins against South Africa and England, the team's performance plateaued after a middling home 50-over World Cup in October. Siddons however will be taking over a youthful side in the midst of a good run of form, with them this month completing ODI and T20I series wins against West Indies. In his playing career Siddons was a prolific run-scorer in Australian domestic cricket, captaining both South Australia and Victoria, finishing his career with over 10,000 Sheffield Shield runs. His immediate focus will be preparing the squad for the Women's T20 World Cup set to be held in England this June. His first official assignment is a tour of Bangladesh in April-May. Jamie Siddons is bringing a wealth of experience to the table as Sri Lanka Women's head coach. He's got an impressive track record, having led Bangladesh men's team to a historic Test series win in the West Indies and coaching stints with South Australia Redbacks and Wellington Firebirds. Siddons brings extensive international coaching experience, having previously served as the head coach of Bangladesh's men's team, South Australia's Redbacks, and New Zealand's Wellington Firebirds. This appointment comes after Sri Lanka's recent wins against the West Indies in T20I and ODI series.