Sangakkara explains his approach to the game and his career
By K.R. Nayar, Chief Cricket Writer Published: 17:37 April 7, 2014Gulf News
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Mirpur: It was a dramatic finish to the international T20 careers of Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium at the final of the International Cricket Council World Twenty20 Cup.
Sangakkara, who hit an unbeaten 52 to sign off from the format with the Player of the Final award, turned emotional when Gulf News asked him about his feelings. In a voice choked with emotion, he said: “It’s amazing. I can’t explain it. This is the first time I have been part of a team that has won a World Cup. We’ve been disappointed four times before. It’s hard to describe exactly what you feel but you feel humble.”
Sangakkara then went on to thank everyone starting from his teammates, fans, support staff and his family and then made a remark that illustrated how humble a person he is as a cricketer. “You may be the best batsman or the best bowler in the world, but you can’t do anything without support. You can never do anything alone. At moments like this, you have to look back, reflect and be thankful for that support, because without that you wouldn’t be here. It’s been an amazing journey. It’s time to walk away, and to walk away like this is even better.”
When he was the captain, Sangakkara was always a journalists’ delight since his answers always made good copy. When asked about how emotional he was, Sangakkara revealed one of his traits: “I am a great believer that if you get emotional you have to use it to your advantage. If not, then forget about being emotional. When we had 11 runs to get and I top-edged a boundary, I knew it was a couple of shots away and with Thisara [Perera] at the other end, it was a done deal. That’s when I thought I could show some emotion. Sometimes you have to pump yourself up to get over the line. That’s what happened today.”
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