Veteran coach and former international cricketer Pubudu Dassanayake has been reappointed as head coach of the USA Men’s National Cricket Team, marking his second tenure in the role. His appointment comes just ahead of USA’s crucial home ODI tri-series against Canada and Oman, set to begin this Saturday in Florida.
USA Cricket will formally introduce Dassanayake at a press conference scheduled for Wednesday in Florida. He replaces Vincent Vinay Kumar, who had been serving as interim head coach since earlier this year.
A seasoned leader with a global coaching résumé
Dassanayake, born in Kandy, Sri Lanka, brings with him an extensive playing and coaching career that spans multiple continents. A former wicketkeeper who represented both Sri Lanka and Canada at the international level, Dassanayake played 11 Tests and 16 ODIs for Sri Lanka between 1993 and 1994, before continuing his domestic career until 2001. After emigrating to Canada, he made his debut for the Canadian national team in 2005 and captained the side in multiple Intercontinental Cup fixtures.
Following his playing career, Dassanayake transitioned to coaching and quickly established a reputation for lifting emerging cricket nations. He led Canada to qualification for the 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup before taking over the reins of Nepal’s national team, where he oversaw one of the most successful periods in the country’s cricket history—including qualification for the 2014 ICC World Twenty20.
His first stint with USA Cricket began in September 2016. In that role, he guided the U.S. to promotion at the 2016 ICC World Cricket League Division Four tournament in Los Angeles, a campaign capped with a dominant win in the final. Dassanayake resigned from the post in July 2019 following internal conflicts and what was widely regarded as a power struggle within the organization.
Coaching experience since leaving USA
Since stepping away from USA Cricket in 2019, Dassanayake has continued to be active in international coaching. He returned to lead Nepal again in 2021 and later coached Canada through the 2024 ICC T20 World Cup, where his side notably defeated Ireland—a full ICC member—during the group stages. Despite the achievement, he was dismissed from the Canada role shortly after the tournament concluded.
He also has experience coaching in domestic franchise cricket, including his most recent stint with the Janakpur Bolts in the Nepal Premier League.
A familiar face at a critical time
Dassanayake’s return to USA Cricket comes at a pivotal moment as the team prepares for a packed calendar leading into the ICC T20 World Cup 2026 qualification cycle and further ambitions to climb the ODI World Cup ladder. His appointment signals an attempt to bring both stability and high-performance leadership to a team that has faced significant off-field challenges in recent years.
Having worked across multiple cricketing cultures—from the subcontinent to North America—Dassanayake brings a wealth of cross-cultural experience, as well as a history of guiding underdog teams to landmark achievements.
USA Cricket will hope that his second stint can be as productive—and perhaps more enduring—than the first. His familiarity with American cricketing structures and players could prove to be a key asset as the organization looks to reassert itself regionally and globally.
