Colombo, April 25 (IANS): Former Sri Lanka captain Marvan Atapattu was appointed the head coach of the national cricket team Friday, following the resignation of Paul Farbrace earlier this week.
"Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) wishes to announce that Marvan Atapattu has been appointed as the national team head coach and Ruwan Kalpage as the interim assistant coach with immediate effect," said a Sri Lanka cricket release.
"These appointments will be for the upcoming Ireland and England tour and the South Africa tour of Sri Lanka."
Atapattu's playing career spanned from 1990 to 2007 in which he played 90 Tests, accumulating 5,502 runs with 16 centuries at an average of 39.02. The right handed batsman also played 268 One-Day Internationals (ODI) making 8,529 runs at an average of 37.57 with 11 centuries.
Atapattu will be aided by former Test spinner and current fielding coach Kalpage, who has played 11 Tests and 86 ODIs from 1,992 to 1999.
Earlier this week, Englishman Farbrace quit to become new England coach Peter Moores' deputy.