Marvan Atapattu has been named coach of Sri Lanka ahead of next year's World Cup

Former Sri Lanka captain Marvan Atapattu has been named full-time coach of the national side after a successful spell as interim coach.

Atapattu, 43, becomes the first Sri Lankan to coach the team on a full-time basis since Roy Dias in 1999, foreign-born coaches having been at the helm since then.

Englishman Paul Farbrace resigned in April and Atapattu took charge on an interim basis for a famous Test series victory in England, followed by Test and one-day series victories at home to Pakistan.

And the executive committee of Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) has now “unanimously approved" the appointment of Atapattu with immediate effect, although the terms and length of his deal have not been disclosed.

An accomplished opening batsman, Atapattu played 90 Tests and 268 one-dayers between 1990-2007, joined the support staff as batting coach in 2011, and was named deputy to Graham Ford in 2013.

Sri Lanka will play host to England for a seven match one-day international series which starts on 26 November, ahead of the 50-over World Cup in Australia and New Zealand next year.