By Champika Fernando
cricket
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Specialist power-hitting coach Julian Wood and biomechanics expert Rene Ferdinands have been shown the door less than a year after being brought into the system amid much fanfare, as the newly-installed Transformation Committee continues its sweeping overhaul of the country’s cricket structure.
Both coaches are expected to leave Sri Lanka Cricket at the end of this month despite initially being given three months’ notice.
Wood, recruited last year to address Sri Lanka’s chronic struggles in power-hitting, and Ferdinands, a highly-qualified biomechanics specialist entrusted with improving the country’s spin resources, have become the latest victims of the changes implemented by the committee headed by Eran Wickramaratne.
Both coaches Rene Ferdinands (left) and Julian Wood are expected to leave Sri Lanka Cricket at the end of this month
Their departures were confirmed by SLC Chief Executive Officer Ashley de Silva.
“Both will leave at the end of the month,” de Silva said.
“Wood’s contract is anyway ending in September, so we informed him that it would not be extended. In Ferdinands’ case, although his contract runs until September next year, we decided to terminate it because we are yet to establish the biomechanics facility required to fully utilise his expertise.”
Wood arrived in Colombo last October on a one-year contract after impressing officials during a week-long power-hitting programme conducted with national players. At the time, Sri Lanka’s inability to clear the ropes consistently had become a major concern, particularly in white-ball cricket where the team lagged well behind leading nations in scoring and six-hitting rates.
His appointment was seen as a progressive move. Wood had previously worked with the England and Wales Cricket Board, county sides Gloucestershire, Hampshire and Middlesex, as well as IPL franchise Punjab Kings. He also enjoyed a brief stint with Bangladesh before Sri Lanka secured his services.
Ferdinands, meanwhile, arrived with an even more impressive academic pedigree. Holding a PhD in biomechanics from New Zealand’s University of Waikato, he had worked with the BCCI’s National Cricket Academy and New Zealand Cricket, specialising in performance analysis, injury prevention and spin bowling development.
When Sri Lanka Cricket unveiled the appointments, the message was clear. The board wanted to embrace science, data and modern coaching methods to bridge the gap with the world’s leading cricket nations.
Less than nine months later, that vision appears to have changed.
Ironically, neither coach was directly removed from the system during the major High Performance Centre restructuring carried out in March this year. Instead, both were shifted from the national setup into newly-created HPC roles.
Wood became HPC Power-Hitting Coach responsible for all high-performance squads, including the women’s programme, while Ferdinands was redesignated as HPC Spin Bowling Coach with a mandate to oversee spin development and biomechanics across all squads. At the time, Sri Lanka Cricket maintained both coaches would continue to play an important role within the pathway structure.
Their departures come amid a period of unprecedented change following the resignation of the elected SLC Executive Committee led by Shammi Silva after government intervention. Since assuming control, the Transformation Committee has moved swiftly, replacing selectors and making significant changes to cricket operations. Former High Performance Consultant Sanath Jayasuriya has also stepped away from his role, adding to the sense of flux within the system.