The announcement was made by the board on Monday. Kirsten will take on this role starting April 15, with a contract that extends for two years, concluding on April 14, 2028.

One of Kirsten’s primary responsibilities will be to prepare the Sri Lankan national men’s team for the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2027. This tournament is set to take place in South Africa, Namibia, and Zimbabwe.

Kirsten enjoyed a remarkable international career with South Africa, amassing a total of 14,087 runs across Test and ODI formats from 1993 to 2004. His achievements include 21 Test centuries and 13 ODI centuries. During his Test career, he played 101 matches, scoring 7,289 runs at an average of 45.27, while in 185 ODIs, he accumulated 6,798 runs at an average of 40.95. Additionally, he scored 16,670 runs in 221 first-class matches and 9,586 runs in 294 List A matches at an average of 36.58.

Kirsten has previously served as the head coach for the Indian men’s team from 2008 to 2011 and for the South African men’s team from 2011 to 2013. Under his guidance, India won the ODI World Cup, and South Africa achieved the number one ranking across all formats in 2013.

In a statement, Sri Lanka Cricket noted, "The appointment of the new head coach is part of efforts to restructure the National High-Performance Centre."

Kirsten’s most recent role was as a consultant for Cricket Namibia during the recently concluded ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026.

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