Sawt Falasteen - Sri Lanka's Karunaratne to bow out of Tests after 'fulfilling dream'

The 36-year-old former skipper was a rock at the top of the Sri Lankan order for more than a decade, but has gone 25 innings without a century.

The second Test against Australia in Galle will be his farewell to the five-day game.

"As a kid my only dream was to play just one Test match," Karunaratne, who has scored 7,172 runs in his 99 Tests, said on Wednesday.

"Reaching 100 Tests is something truly special. But as you may have heard, this will also be my last.

"You have to take stock of things and make a call at the right time. I'm at peace with my decision."

Renowned for his cool head and affable nature, Karunaratne also proved a shrewd leader.

Taking over the captaincy at a turbulent time in 2019, he steadied the ship and led Sri Lanka to a historic series win in South Africa.

To this day, Sri Lanka remain the only Asian team to conquer the Proteas in their own backyard.

"You always set goals in life and the beauty of the game is that you chase your dreams, though you may not achieve all of them," Karunaratne said.

Karunaratne relinquished the captaincy in 2023, saying it was time for younger cricketers to lead, and said Wednesday it was again time to "pass the baton to the next generation".

"There are so many talented young players waiting in the wings," he added.

Karunaratne said he planned to travel to Australia after the series to study coaching.

"Then I want to come back and contribute to Sri Lankan cricket as a coach," he added.

Sri Lanka trail the two-match series after losing the opener by an innings and 242 runs, their worst-ever Test defeat.

B.AbuZeid--SF-PST