Sri Lanka’s cricket team’s preparations for the 2026 T20 World Cup will begin with a series against Pakistan. The T20 World Cup will be played on grounds in India and Sri Lanka starting February 7th. Ahead of that ICC event, the Sri Lanka Cricket Board has made a significant decision.
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It has decided to appoint the coach who led India to world championship glory as its team’s coach. We are talking about Vikram Rathour, whom Sri Lanka has appointed as its batting coach. Vikram Rathour served as the Indian team’s batting coach until the 2024 T20 World Cup. It was during his tenure as batting coach that Team India became the T20 World Champions.
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Rathour is also the assistant coach of the Rajasthan Royals in the IPL. Now, he will be offering his services to Sri Lanka and helping them win the 2026 T20 World Cup . Vikram Rathour will take over as Sri Lanka’s batting coach on January 15. This means he will not be part of Sri Lanka’s three-match T20I series against Pakistan, scheduled to be played between January 7 and January 11.
Sri Lanka are set to rope in former India batter Vikram Rathour as Batting Coach lead up to the T20 World Cup. Rathour was India’s batting coach until 2024 and currently is the assistant coach of IPL team Rajastan Royals. He will join the Sri Lankan side on the 15th January. pic.twitter.com/DO7TGdDQpe
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The T20 series against Pakistan is already part of Sri Lanka ‘s World Cup preparations. After that, they will set up a camp to better address their shortcomings before the 2026 T20 World Cup. Vikram Rathour may also be present to help the Sri Lankan team overcome their shortcomings.
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It can be said that the 2026 T20 World Cup will be Rathour’s first major mission after becoming Sri Lanka’s batting coach.