Jonty Rhodes denies being appointed as Sri Lanka Cricket consultant

Former South Africa cricketer Jonty Rhodes has denied reports of being appointed as a new consultant coach of Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC).

A release published by SLC on Thursday (Jan.18) mentioned that its Executive Committee decided to obtain the services of Rhodes, who is a specialist fielding coach, alongside former India National Team fast bowling coach Bharat Arun, and former Sri Lanka National Team physiotherapist Alex Kountouri.

The island’s cricket governing body in its press release underscored the importance of its Executive Committee’s latest decisions and added that is “for the advancement of the game in the country.”

“Sri Lanka Cricket decided to obtain the services of some of the best-known talents in international cricket to provide advanced training for local coaches, trainers, and physiotherapists to enhance their skills and competencies by conducting periodic training programs in selected areas.

“Towards this, the Executive Committee decided to obtain the services of former South African cricketer Jonty Rhodes, who is a specialist fielding coach—former India National Team fast bowling coach Bharat Arun—and former Sri Lanka National Team physiotherapist Alex Kountouri,” the statement read.
 
However, a day after the official announcement, Rhodes clarified that he has not signed any deal with Sri Lanka Cricket. The 54-year-old is currently associated with Lucknow Super Giants in the Indian Premier League and Durban Super Giants in SA20.

“This is news to me #checkyourfacts,” Rhodes posted on X.

Notably, Rhodes had been appointed as Sri Lanka’s fielding coach for 10 days for the series against Pakistan in 2015. Afterwards, he was part of the Mumbai Indians and later on joined Punjab Kings in the same role. 

Meanwhile, Bharat Arun is yet to comment after the official announcement from Sri Lanka Cricket. He was part of the support staff when India won the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in 2021 and played a vital role in developing Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj among many others. He is currently the bowling coach of Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL.

--with inputs from agencies