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Sri Lanka v England, 1st Test, Kandy
Jayasuriya announces retirement from Tests
Cricinfo staff
December 3, 2007
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Jayasuriya made 78 in his final innings
© AFP
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Sanath Jayasuriya, the Sri Lanka batsman, has announced that the Kandy Test against England will be his last, ending hours of speculation after the Sunday Times reported that the Sri Lankan selectors gave him the option of playing a farewell Test and then quitting rather than being dropped.
"I will be retiring from Tests after this match," Jayasuriya confirmed to a television channel covering the series. "I wanted to end my Test career in Sri Lanka, particularly in Kandy. I will continue playing one-day internationals."
In the last two-and-a-half years he has scored only 497 runs in 15 Tests, at an average of 19.88 with one fifty. His average, at one point nudging 50, slipped under 40 with his failure in the first innings of this Test. However, he came back strongly in the second, blasting 78, which included six consecutive fours in a single over off James Anderson. In the process, he helped Sri Lanka quickly erase the first-innings deficit of 93.
"This is the right time to retire," Jayasuriya said. "There are some young guys coming up, and I wanted to go while on top. Life without cricket will be tough, but I will still be playing one-day cricket and contributing to the team."
© Cricinfo
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