Kumar Sangakkara turned back the clock with a scintillating century in Raipur on Monday.
The match was part of a T20 cricket league featuring renowned retired cricketers. Sangakkara, Rajasthan Royals' Director of Cricket, is captaining the Sri Lankan side in the tournament.
On Monday, Sangakkara led from the front with an unbeaten 106 off 47 balls and guided his team to a resounding nine-wicket win over England at the Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Stadium.
The 47-year-old Sangakkara was involved in a 108-run opening stand with Romesh Kaluwitharana as he struck 19 fours and one six to help his team chase down a 147-run target in just 12.5 overs.
Having already qualified for the semi-finals before the match against England, Monday’s emphatic win also ensured Sri Lanka the top spot in the league stage standings.
One of the best in the world during his playing days, Kumar Sangakkara is second on the all-time list for highest scorers in ODI cricket with 14234 runs in 404 matches at an average of 41.98 and a strike rate of 78.86.
The Sri Lankan talisman hit 25 centuries as well as 93 fifties over the course of his ODI career.
He scored 1382 runs in 56 T20I matches and was also a part of the Sri Lankan squad that won the 2014 T20 World Cup.
Sangakkara is also Sri Lank’s leading scorer in Test cricket with 12400 runs in 134 matches at an average of 57.40.
He hit 38 centuries and 52 fifties, including 11 double tons - the second-most in Test history only behind Sir Don Bradman’s 12. Sangakkara retired from international cricket back in 2015.
As Director of Cricket for Rajasthan Royals, Sangakkara is in charge of overseeing the team's day-to-day operations, including strategy, development and the overall performance of the team.
He was also the head coach of the Rajasthan Royals team that finished as runners-up in the 2022 edition of the Indian Premier League.
Rajasthan Royals will start their IPL 2025 campaign with an away game against Sunrisers Hyderabad at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium on March 23.
