Former Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara has expressed excitement about the vacant England white-ball head coach position, a role that falls vacant following the end of Matthew Mott’s two-year tenure at the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB).

There have been rumours of multiple candidates for the position, with Marcus Trescothick currently serving as interim manager. Sangakkara’s name was reportedly on the shortlist, largely due to his close working relationship with captain Jos Buttler during the Indian Premier League (IPL).

Kumar Sangakkara has been serving as the director of cricket at the Rajasthan Royals (RR) franchise since 2021. Under his guidance, the team reached the finals of IPL 2022.

“While my name has been mentioned, I have not been formally approached for the England white-ball coaching position. Although it is an exciting opportunity and there are many qualified candidates. Right now, I am very happy with my role at Rajasthan Royals, it has been an extremely rewarding experience for the last four years,” Sangakkara claimed.

After a promising start to his 2022 tenure that included a series win and a T20 World Cup victory, Matthew Mott has struggled to maintain England’s dominance since then. Under Jos Buttler’s captaincy, the team failed to retain their white-ball titles, finished poorly at the 2023 ODI World Cup in India and reached the semi-finals of the 2024 T20 World Cup.

Former England captain Eoin Morgan has urged the ECB to pursue top global names for the vacant head coaching position, specifically suggesting Ricky Ponting, Stephen Fleming, Rahul Dravid and current England red-ball coach Brendon McCullum as potential candidates for the role.

The European Central Bank (ECB) is considering Andrew Flintoff, Michael Hussey and Jonathan Trott as potential candidates.

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