Former Sri Lanka captain Atapattu has been in interim charge of the team since Paul Farbrace's departure to join Peter Moores' England set-up in April.
He has since led the side to ODI and Test series victories in England and against Pakistan, and recently expressed his confidence in taking the role permanently.
A slight blot on his copybook came in the form of series defeats while touring South Africa.
And the Sri Lanka Cricket Board (SLC) confirmed in a statement on Tuesday that the 43-year-old is not guaranteed the top job.
It read: "Sri Lanka Cricket wishes to announce that at the meeting held today it was decided to shortlist 2 candidates for the above post which included Marvan Attapattu.
"The Committee had a discussion with Marvan Attapattu and will discuss with the other candidate during the course of the day and the final decision will be conveyed to the ExCo for their ratification tomorrow."