The Afghanistan Cricket Board has named former Ireland international John Mooney as the National Team’s new fielding coach, and Australian Nirmalan Thanabalasingam as the new physiotherapist. Both have participated in the ongoing training and preparation camp ahead of the next T20I assignments.
John Mooney has played 91 international matches for Ireland, including three ICC Cricket World Cups (2007, 2011, and 2015) and two ICC Men’s T20 World Cups.
He has Level 3, 2, and 1 Coaching Certificates from the England Cricket Board and formerly worked as the fielding coach for the Afghanistan National Team from 2018 to 2019. He also worked with the West Indies Cricket Team in 2019 and has served as a Relief Coach for the Ireland Women’s National Team since January of this year.
Nirmalan Thanabalasingam brings with him a solid educational and professional background in physiotherapy and sports science. He completed his Master of Physiotherapy in 2010, following a Bachelor of Applied Science in Exercise and Sports Science in 2008, both from the University of Sydney. He is a registered practitioner with the Physiotherapy Board of Australia and an active member of the Australian Physiotherapy Association (APA).
Nirmalan has a strong interest in treating sports injuries and exercise-based rehabilitation. Since 2018, he has served as the Senior Physiotherapist at Concord Sports Medicine. On the international stage, he has also been the Team Physiotherapist for the Desert Vipers in the International League T20 (ILT20) since 2020. Previously, from March 2017 to June 2018, Nirmalan worked as the High Performance Training & Rehabilitation Manager for Sri Lanka Cricket.
His extensive experience in the highest levels of elite sport also includes roles with Cricket NSW, Rangpur Riders (BPL), Montreal Tigers (GT20 – Canada), ICC World XI, Sydney Thunder (BBL), and the West Harbour Rugby Union Club.
Currently, Afghanistan are undergoing a training and preparation camp in Abu Dhabi as they prepare for the Tri-Nation T20I Series, which features Pakistan and host UAE, as well as the ACC Men’s T20I Asia Cup 2025.
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