Sri Lanka Cricket rope in Bell as batting coach ahead of Test series vs England

Ian Bell (Pic: File Pic)

Sri Lanka Cricket roped in Ian Bell as batting coach ahead of away Test series vs England

Colombo, Aug 13 (PTI) Sri Lanka appointed Ian Bell as their batting coach ahead of England's three-match Test series.

Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) announced on its website that Bell, who scored 7727 runs in 118 Tests, will start working with the national side later this week.

"He will start working with the team from August 16 and remain until the conclusion of the three-test match series," SLC said.

SLC CEO Ashley de Silva expressed: "We appointed Ian to bring in a person with local knowledge to help the players with key insights on the conditions there."

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"Ian has a lot of experience playing in England, and we believe his input will help our team in this crucial tour.

Sri Lanka's tour of England begins with the first Test at Manchester from August 21-25. The second Test will be played at Lord's from August 29-September 2 while The Oval will host the third and final Test from September 6-10.

England in the absence of their skipper Ben Stokes has appointed Ollie Pope as their stand-in Test captain. Stokes suffered a hamstring injury while playing in The Hundred.

Stokes sustained the injury while batting and was eventually helped off the field. He was taken for scans and was also seen walking with the help of crutches.

Sri Lanka recently defeated Team India in the ODI series. One match ended in a draw and the Lankans came victorious in the remaining two matches. Leg spinner Jeffrey Vandersay shone in the second ODI claiming six wickets. He made the most out of the opportunity as he was named as the replacement of Wanindu Hasaranga.

During the ODI series, Team India's batsmen were seen struggling against the Lankan spinners.

(With PTI Inputs)