Kumar Sangakkara shocks sporting world by playing 3rd Division cricket in England – CNBC TV18

Former Sri Lankan captain Kumar Sangakkara scored 68 off 50 deliveries playing for the Shillingstone CC against Kingston Lacy CC in the third divison Dorset Cricket League in the United Kingdom (UK) this weekend.

Batting at No. 5, Sangakkara helped Shillingstone CC to post 177 in the first innings. They were bowled out under 37 overs, and Sangakkara’s quick half-century played a key role in that. However, the Rajasthan Royals (RR) tactician proved to be handy with the ball after that, taking one wicket and returning with figures of 7-0-32-1, donning a role that he never did for Sri Lanka.

What is Division Three cricket? 

The league that Sangakkara played in is the fifth tier of recreational cricket in Dorset, which is a county in southwest England.

Teams in the competition are allowed to name multiple playing XIs and hence the southpaw played the match despite not being a part of the first-choice team. Several ex professionals over the years have tried their hand in recreational cricket in the UK.

Sangakkara’s team Shillingstone CC are third in the standings after having emerged victorious twice in the five matches that they have played in the Dorset Cricket League so far.

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Sangakkara is one of the most renowned figures in the modern-day game, having represented Sri Lanka in 134 Tests, 404 ODIs and 56 T20Is. In the longest format, he amassed 12400 runs at an average of 57.40 with the help of 52 half-centuries and 38 tons. In ODIs, he aggregated 14234 runs, having batted at No. 3 for the major chunk of his career. He averaged 41.98 and recorded 93 half-centuries to go with 25 tons in the 50-overs game.

Sangakkara was the captain of the Sri Lankan team that finished runners-up in the ICC Men’s ODI World Cup 2011 that was held in India. He was also a part of their victorious team in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2014 hosted by Bangladesh.