Kumar Sangakkara to Retire From International Cricket After Second Test Against India

File photo of Kumar Sangakkara.

© AFP

Sri Lanka’s batting great Kumar Sangakkara on Saturday ended speculation about his future saying he will retire during the home series against India in August.

“This is my time to call it a day,” Sangakkara, 37, told reporters on the sidelines of the second Test against Pakistan in Colombo.

The left-hander said he will play two of the three Tests against India that are to take place in Sri Lanka in August. The exact dates and venues have not yet been announced.

Sangakkara will also miss the third and final Test of the ongoing series against Pakistan.

The 37-year-old wicketkeeper has already announced retirement from One-Day International (ODI) and Twenty-20 cricket.

He quit the shortest format after winning the World T20 2014. He has quit ODI cricket after the 2015 ICC World Cup.

In 131 Tests till now, Sangakkara has scored 12,271 runs at 58.43, which makes him the fifth highest scorer in Test match history. Only Sachin Tendulkar (15,921), Ricky Ponting (13,378), Jacques Kallis (13,289) and Rahul Dravid (13,288) are above him in the elite list.

Sangakkara has also scored 38 centuries and 51 half-centuries.