Bangladesh rope in Thilan Samaraweera as batting consultant

Thilan Samaraweera, the former Sri Lankan middle-order batsman, has been roped in as the batting consultant by the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) for the forthcoming One-Day International (ODI) and Test series against England, starting in October this year.

Earlier, the 39-year-old right-hander worked in a similar role for Australia at the National Cricket Centre in Brisbane before the tour of Sri Lanka. Nazmul Hassan, BCB's president, stated that Samaraweera has been hired only for the home series against England as of now, but his contract could also be extended.

"Thilan Samaraweera, the batting specialist, has been hired for the England series as a consultant," Hassan said. "We will see if we want to extend him. We are still looking for a spin bowling coach. [We will] get the best among those available. We hope to appoint one before the New Zealand series."

Richard Halsall, the former Zimbabwe allrounder, has been elevated to the role of assistant coach after Ruwan Kalpage's contract was terminated as he failed to report for work by August 16, which was the deadline. Halsall, who has a proven track record as a fielding coach in the county circuit, was handed the role in 2014.