1. Kumar Chokshanada Sangakkara is a Sri Lankan former professional cricketer who represented Sri Lanka from 2000 to 2015.
52 Facts About Kumar Sangakkara
1. 2.
Kumar Sangakkara was inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame in June 2021, the second Sri Lankan player to be inducted after Muttiah Muralitharan.
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Kumar Sangakkara was born in Matale, Central Province, on 27 October 1977.
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Kumar Sangakkara made his List A debut on 28 December 1997 in a 50-over match, playing for Nondescripts against Bloomfield Cricket and Athletic Club at the Sinhalese Sports Club Ground in Colombo.
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In November 1999, Kumar Sangakkara was selected for the Sri Lanka A team's tour of South Africa.
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On 20 May 2000, playing in a limited overs match for Sri Lanka A against the touring Zimbabwe A at the De Soysa Stadium in Moratuwa, Kumar Sangakkara played an outstanding innings of 156 not out, which helped him to obtain a place in Sri Lanka's national team two months later.
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Nondescripts then played Colts at the R Premadasa Stadium in the quarter-final but lost by 4 wickets; Sangakkara again scored 39.
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Kumar Sangakkara made his Twenty20 International debut on 15 June 2006 when Sri Lanka played England at the Rose Bowl, near Southampton.
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Kumar Sangakkara played English county cricket with Warwickshire in the 2007 County Championship.
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In 2010, Kumar Sangakkara was contracted to represent Lancashire in the 2010 County Championship, but never represented the club because of international commitments.
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When Sri Lanka toured Bangladesh in February 2006 regular captain Marvan Atapattu was injured and Mahela Jayawardene became captain while Kumar Sangakkara was made vice-captain.
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Pakistan toured Sri Lanka for two Test and three ODIs in March 2006, and with Atapattu still injured Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara remained captain and vice-captain respectively.
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In July 2006, Kumar Sangakkara made his second-highest Test score to-date against South Africa.
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Kumar Sangakkara's skill was recognised worldwide when he earned selection for the ICC World XI One-Day International team that competed against Australia in the Johnnie Walker Series in October 2005.
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Kumar Sangakkara was one of the winners of the 2008 inaugural ESPN cricinfo awards for outstanding batting in Test cricket.
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Kumar Sangakkara was named in the World Test XI by the ICC in 2010.
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In November 2006, Kumar Sangakkara was included in the ICC World XI Test team.
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Kumar Sangakkara was in the Sri Lanka teams which reached the finals of the 2007 Cricket World Cup, the 2011 Cricket World Cup, the 2009 ICC World Twenty20 and the 2012 ICC World Twenty20.
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In January 2021, Kumar Sangakkara was named the director of cricket of Rajasthan Royals ahead of the IPL 2021, and subsequently the team's head coach.
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Kumar Sangakkara said he believed that it would give his successor around two years to build up to the 2011 Cricket World Cup.
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Kumar Sangakkara was named in the 'Team of the Tournament' by ESPNcricinfo for the 2009 T20I World Cup.
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Kumar Sangakkara was named as captain and wicket-keeper of the 'Team of the Tournament' for the 2011 World Cup by the ICC.
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Kumar Sangakkara was named as captain and wicket-keeper of the 2011 World Test XI by the ICC and named in the 2012 World Test XI and ODI XI.
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In 2012, Kumar Sangakkara received the Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy having been elected ICC Cricketer of the Year.
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Kumar Sangakkara struggled with his form when England toured Sri Lanka in 2012.
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In 2015, Kumar Sangakkara joined the Quetta Gladiators of the Pakistan Super League.
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Kumar Sangakkara was later released by the franchise and was picked by Karachi Kings as captain for the 2017 edition.
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Kumar Sangakkara represented Surrey from 2015 till 2017, helping them win Division Two of LV= 2015 County Championship and gaining promotion to Division One for the Specsavers 2016 County Championship season.
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On 22 May 2017, Kumar Sangakkara announced that the following season would be his last in first-class cricket.
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Kumar Sangakkara, though retired from international cricket, participated in the 2015 Cricket All-Stars Series for Warne's Warriors under Shane Warne's captaincy.
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Kumar Sangakkara won the Man of the Match award in the 2014 ICC World Twenty20 Final and was part of the Sri Lankan team who won the 2014 ICC World Twenty20.
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Kumar Sangakkara under-performed in the World T20 until, in the final against India, he scored 51 not out off 33 balls and help his team win their second ICC trophy since 1996.
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On 3 December 2014 Kumar Sangakkara reached 13,000 runs in One-day internationals in the third match of the series at the Mahinda Rajapaksa International Stadium, Hambantota, and became the fourth player in One-day history to achieve the feat after Sachin Tendulkar, Ricky Ponting, and Sanath Jayasuriya.
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On 4 January 2015, Kumar Sangakkara scored his 38th test century by making 203 against New Zealand during the second match of the 2 Test match series.
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On 14 February 2015, Kumar Sangakkara became the second highest run scorer in One-Day International history, by surpassing Australian Ricky Ponting.
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Kumar Sangakkara achieved this milestone during the first match of the 2015 ICC Cricket World Cup against New Zealand, but Sri Lanka lost the match.
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On 26 February 2015 in the 2015 ICC Cricket World Cup against Bangladesh, Kumar Sangakkara scored his 22nd ODI century in his 400th appearance in One-Day Internationals.
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Kumar Sangakkara only scored 45 runs, it was Sri Lanka's first World Cup defeat in a quarter final after 1999.
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Kumar Sangakkara was named in the 'Team of the Tournament' for the 2015 World Cup by the ICC.
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Kumar Sangakkara retired from T20Is in April 2014 and from ODIs on 18 March 2015.
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Kumar Sangakkara is noted for his willingness to speak openly about controversial topics and he was chosen by Marylebone Cricket Club to deliver the 2011 Spirit of Cricket Cowdrey Lecture at Lord's.
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Kumar Sangakkara observed that the problems had arisen only after Sri Lanka's 1996 Cricket World Cup victory and blamed "a handful of well-meaning individuals" who control the game, wasting the finances and resources of Sri Lanka Cricket.
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Kumar Sangakkara joined Sri Lanka's international selection committee on 7 March 2016, working with chairman Aravinda de Silva and fellow selectors Romesh Kaluwitharana, Ranjith Madurasinghe, and Lalith Kaluperuma.
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In 2021, Kumar Sangakkara was appointed to Sri Lanka Cricket's four-man technical advisory committee panel, again working with de Silva; the other two members were Muttiah Muralitharan and Roshan Mahanama.
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Kumar Sangakkara has worked for Sky Sports since 2018 as a cricket commentatator.
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In January 2019, Kumar Sangakkara accepted an invitation from the incumbent President of Marylebone Cricket Club, Anthony Wreford, to be his successor.
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The decision was announced on 1 May 2019, at which time Kumar Sangakkara became the President-Designate.
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Kumar Sangakkara had been awarded honorary life membership of MCC in 2012 and had joined its World Cricket Committee the same year.
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Kumar Sangakkara is the currently the Director of Cricket, Rajasthan Royals in the IPL, having been appointed in January 2021.
50.
In June 2021, Kumar Sangakkara was elected to the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame, the second Sri Lankan player after Muttiah Muralitharan to receive the honour.
51.
Kumar Sangakkara met his wife, Yehali, when they were at school together; they have twin children who were born in 2009 soon after he assumed the Sri Lanka captaincy.
52.
In December 2011, Kumar Sangakkara collaborated with Mahela Jayawardene and veteran chef Dharshan Munidasa to open the Ministry of Crab which has developed into one of Colombo's most successful restaurants.