The year 2015 will be marked as the year of retirement for Sri Lankan cricket. Another prominent Sri Lankan cricketer, Kumar Sangakkara, has declared his retirement from all forms of the game, months after Mahela Jaywardene announced his retirement.
“I have decided to call it a day on my international career during the second Test of the upcoming Indian series,” Sangakkara said after stumps on day three of the second Test in Colombo.
He also added, “This was the commitment I had made with the previous selection committee. I had originally planned to retire after the World Cup, but following discussions with the previous selectors, I gave the commitment that I will be available for these two series.”
AUDIO: Kumar Sangakkara announces Test retirement http://t.co/JogR4YPpR1 | Sri Lanka Cricket
— Sri Lanka Cricket (@OfficialSLC) June 27, 2015 Starting his career in the year 2000, Sangakkara is Sri Lanka’s most successful test batsman with 12,305 runs over 132 matches.
He is fifth on the list of highest run scorers in test matches with an outstanding average of 58.31. In terms of number of innings, he was also the quickest batsman to reach 8000, 9000, 10,000 (on par with Sachin Tendulkar and Brian Lara), 11,000 and 12,000 runs. He has 38 hundreds and 11 double-centuries — one less than Donald Bradman’s record of 12.
Sangakkara @KumarSanga2 retires from Test cricket. A wonderful player who will be remembered. Lucky to watch him play #SL #PAKvsSL #Cricket
— واجد رسول (@wajidrasul) June 27, 2015 This will be missed once he retires.. Kumar Sangakkara.. Undoubtedly Sri Lanka’s best batsman ever.. One of the… http://t.co/3gTRX2oKFl
— MOHAR MOGHE (@moharmoghe) June 27, 2015 Earlier this year, he declared his One day International (ODI) r etirement on March 18, 2015, against South Africa during the quarter final stage of 2015 ICC Cricket World Cup.
In ODIs, he scored 14,234 runs in 404 matches, averaging nearly 42 with 25 centuries. He took 402 catches in ODIs and has 99 stumpings against his name.
Even though Sangakkara has called it a day in international cricket, he will still feature in various domestic competitions around the globe including the KFC Big Bash League, for at least the next two seasons, playing for the Hobart Hurricanes.
Also, Sangakkara has added his two-year contract with English county Surrey.
This will be the end of an era in Sri Lankan cricket after two of its greatest batsmen retire in the same year. But this might not be the end for legendary players like Sangakkara, because cricket would never stop flowing in their veins, We are expecting him to show up again, may be as a coach, a commentator or even as a strategist.
