Sri Lanka departed for Bangladesh without fielding coach Nic Pothas after he refused to be a part of the touring team over a dispute with the management. Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) sources said Pothas, who acted as Sri Lanka's national coach since July last year, wanted him appointed as assistant coach to Chandika Hathurusinghe. However, SLC refused to do so. Apparently Angelo Mathews, who returned as the ODI and T20 skipper, did not see eye to eye with Pothas. Pothas acted as the Head Coach when Graham Ford unexpectedly quit the Sri Lanka set up following the team's early exit at the Champions Trophy. Under Pothas' charge Sri Lanka beat Pakistan 2-0 in the UAE but lost a ODI series to Zimbabwe at home. During his stint, Sri Lanka also suffered defeat in the Tests, ODIs and T20Is against India. He was originally contracted as the fielding coach in 2016 and the two year contract will run out this year.
