Sanga bids farewell to first-class cricket

Former Sri Lanka captain calls an end to storied career in the longer formats of the game

BENGALURU: Former Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara says he is retiring from first-class cricket at the perfect time after a remarkable English county championship season with Surrey.

The 39-year-old left-handed batsman made an unbeaten 35 in his final first-class innings against Lancashire to finish the campaign with eight centuries and 1,491 runs at an average of 106.50.

"I'll miss it terribly, without a doubt, but that's a good thing," he told the BBC on Wednesday. "A lot of players walk away bitter and upset and regretting a lot of the things that might have been. I walk away with a few regrets, like anyone would, but I'm absolutely happy with the way I played the game and what I've achieved. Sometimes you hold on a bit too long and I always think it's better to let go a bit sooner than later."

Sangakkara, who quit test cricket in 2015, is fifth in the list of all-time run scorers. He will continue to play in international T20 competitions next year.