Lehmann to coach Aus till WC '19

Cricket Australia said Monday it has extended the contract of head coach Darren Lehmann until October 2019 to keep him in place during the next Ashes series and World Cup.

Lehmann's contract was due to expire in June next year. CA said it has been extended to cover the 2017-18 Ashes series in Australia and the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup in England and Wales.

Since Lehmann's appointment in 2013 he has taken Australia's Test and one-day teams to the top world ranking, won a home Ashes series 5-0, beat South Africa in a Test series away from home and won last year's ICC Cricket World Cup.

"2019 is such a big year for Australian cricket and we wanted certainty and stability for the playing group, with both the coach and assistant coach contracted, as we build towards the Ashes series and the 2019 World Cup," CA's executive general manager Pat Howard said in a statement.