Vaas, who was Sri Lanka's most successful fast bowler enjoyed a 15-year career for his country and played 111 Test matches and 322 One-Day Internationals.

With 760 wickets across all formats at an average of 28.40, Vaas is only behind Muttiah Muralitharan in the list of the most successful bowlers for Sri Lanka.

Expressing his excitement at the opportunity, Vaas said that he is eager to share his knowledge with the cricketers in the Ireland team.

“I’m very excited to be joining the backroom staff of the Ireland team.

“There’s a lot of talent and experience in the squad which I’m confident I can add to.

“I’ve played with and against some of the guys during my time in county cricket with Middlesex and Northants.

“I’m relishing the prospect of sharing the knowledge and experience I’ve picked up during my 20-plus years in the game.”

Ireland head coach John Bracewell said that the experience of the 41-year-old will be extremely helpful to the bowlers ahead of the 2016 World T20 tournament.

“It’s great to have Chaminda with us through the build-up as well as during the T20 World Cup.

“I have long been an admirer of his skills and like all the Sri Lankan cricketers of his era he was a great problem solver.

“His ability to get wickets in all forms of the game especially on the sub-continent was extraordinary.

“This experience will be invaluable to our bowling group.” 

Vaas will join Ireland during the two T20 Internationals against the United Arab Emirates in Abu Dhabi in February before traveling to India with the team for the T20 mega-event.

Earlier in 2012, Vaas worked as a bowling consultant for New Zealand for a short while before serving as the bowling coach for Sri Lanka between 2013 and 2015. 

(cricketworld.com)