Afghanistan Appoints R Sridhar as Assistant Coach for Upcoming Series Against New Zealand and South Africa

New Delhi: Ramakrishnan Sridhar, a former Indian cricketer and ex-fielding coach of the Indian national team, has been appointed as an assistant coach for the Afghanistan men's senior cricket team. The Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) made the announcement ahead of the team's upcoming series against New Zealand and South Africa. Sridhar will be working alongside head coach Jonathan Trott to prepare the team for the challenging matches ahead.

At 54, Sridhar brings a wealth of experience, having played domestic cricket for Hyderabad and later working as the fielding coach during Ravi Shastri’s tenure as head coach of the Indian national team until 2021. Additionally, Sridhar has served as head coach for Andhra and Tripura state teams, and also held a fielding coach position with Kings XI Punjab in the Indian Premier League.

The ACB clarified that Sridhar’s role will be limited to Afghanistan’s one-off Test against New Zealand in Noida, scheduled for September 9, and the subsequent three-match ODI series against South Africa in Sharjah, starting September 18.

ACB name R. Sridhar as National Team’s Asst. Coach for New Zealand and South Africa Fixtures.

More: https://t.co/B8VZlnB10t pic.twitter.com/nmCuVpCqD9

— Afghanistan Cricket Board (@ACBofficials) August 21, 2024

“Sridhar is a Level-3 certified coach who has served the Indian U19 national team as Assistant Coach and Spin Bowling Coach too,” the ACB media release said. “From 2008 to 2014, Sridhar served India’s National Cricket Academy as an assistant fielding and spin bowling coach.

“It is worth mentioning that the Afghanistan Cricket Board has appointed Sridhar as the assistant coach for the one-off Test against New Zealand and the 3-match ODI series against South Africa. The Afghanistan Cricket Board wish Sridhar to fill the role effectively and hopes to have a long-term contract with him in the future.”