sri-lankan-cricketers

"There is a group within the SLFP who abuse that freedom and democracy. They go on instigating people and rousing racism. Many of those who held leading positions of the SLFP sometime back are supporting that campaign. Disciplinary action should be taken immediately against them."

"I don't like him and I'm not in a club of one."

"Arjuna made us believe in ourselves. He did it for two decades. We owe a lot to him. He helped us become a force in world cricket. He is definitely the most influential cricketer Sri Lanka ever produced."

"If Kumble was born in Australia or England, he would have got much more prominence in world cricket considering his superb record in both forms of the game. Kumble is definitely the best role model for any youngster entering the game."

"You get him out and half the battle is won."

"It does not matter if they come from Singapore, China, Japan or Ethiopia."

"Sports officials must work with more responsibility to develop sports. Even under the good governance government some Sports Ministry officials don't carry out their duties properly as they are influenced by money and power. It is always sports clubs, institutions and sports personnel who pay the price for all misconducts of officials. To change this trend sports authority must take the necessary steps."

"Disappointing to get only 150 after the start we got. Time now to take stock and reassess our squad to ensure the right combo for the t20 WC"

"Sangakkara: Sometimes, you fall into that trap where you think, 'I'm the captain and I've got to do a lot more than I was doing before'. But it's very important to compartmentalise leadership. When you're batting, you bat as a batsman and find ways to score runs. To be effective for your side, you don't have to have the captain's cap on all the time because it's just of no use, as if you do get out and are sitting in the dressing room, there's not much captaining left for you to do. It's important to understand that when you're fielding is when you're essentially marshalling your troops, strategising and making the hard decisions. That's when you're really captaining. If you can break that down and come to grips with it, it becomes a bit easier."

"Interviewer: A captain is as good as his team - thoughts?"

"Sangakkara: Being a good captain is about pulling your own weight in the side and making sure you perform. The better you perform, the easier captaincy becomes. It's a nice interesting balance about your own performance and also surrounding yourself with players of quality which makes captaincy the easiest job because you know you have match-winners in your side. You know people can execute whatever's asked of them. So decision-making becomes very easy. Take Ricky Ponting and the Aussie side that he had under him for a few years. Hard decisions were very rare because you just had to look at your team and knew exactly what they were capable of."

"Interviewer: How important is it for a captain to be a people's person?"

"Sangakkara: It's very important be a good man manager. You need to be able to understand the capabilities of the players. Once you strategise, you need to be able to pick the players to execute them. You also need to ensure people are thinking for themselves because in tough situations, leadership becomes situational where certain players step up to lead the side with their performance or with a little spark of brilliance. That sometimes makes a captain look good even though that was beyond his control"

"Interviewer: Your advice to youngsters who want to take up the sport (referring to cricket)"

"Sangakkara: It's a great sport to play. It's a very special sport because it's one that's got a certain character to it that is not present in other sports. But there's also an expectation of a cricketer that is to be much more than in any other sport. So it's a great test of character for a young kid, but at the same time, it's a great skilful athletic sport that's a viable profession that gives great opportunities as long as you understand that playing this game to the best of your abilities in the most honest manner possible is what will open those doors for you. So if you're taking up the sport, take it up seriously. Have fun, enjoy it, otherwise you won't do well, but when you do get those opportunities, ensure that you leave a mark."

"It was rumored that @ShaneWarne was bitten by a snake during a dare on the show but don't worry twitterverse the snake is absolutely fine."

"Was emotional when he spoke to BBC on Monday May 22,2017 before retiring from First class cricket matches"

"Sanga is a knowledgeable player and will be able to motivate the players"

"I think he is one of the greatest, without a doubt. He is one of the game's terrific players and I wish him best for the future"

"Sri Lanka will suffer with their batting after Sangakkara's retirement. It will be very difficult for them to win the next Test without him around"

"Disappointed we didn't win it for Sanga. We promised him we would play our best cricket, but we didn't. On behalf of the team, we can't thank Sanga enough for his services over the last 15 years."

"I just want to congratulate Kumar again on a wonderful career. I have spoken a lot about him, everyone has, in the last week, but I can't help saying it again that it has been an absolute pleasure playing with you."

"He is an extremely messy person, the messiest on earth. But he loves to cook and absolutely loves making pasta at home. We never discussed cricket at home and always made sure there was life away from the sport at home. Conversations revolved around kids and made sure there was life beyond the sport. Kumar is a very relaxed, open sort of person. He has never demanded much. (But) He will have to get used to our routine now. He will of course still play some cricket for a year or two."

"India always plays a big tournament in a very settled manner. They trust their players and are always consistent in their selection. They always approach a game with a sense of confidence in their abilities and the selection they have made. When it comes to Pakistan, they come to tournaments unsettled, with a lot of controversy and lots of doubts over selection. There seems to be lot of talk even within the team and around the team, even by the management. When it comes to crucial rivalry and the stakes are high, India seems to control their emotion and execute their game-plan. Whenever Pakistan play India, the former seems to be rattled. India always seem to be the more mature side in World Cups than Pakistan, no matter how many senior players are there in their squad."

"You would always prefer to give back to your own country first but the way Mahela conducted himself as a player for Sri Lanka over the years has been exemplary"

"We had a very good side with an experienced batting lineup and strong variety in our bowling but going into the tournament, it was not the most settled time for Sri Lankan cricket, with some disputes going on. But all of this actually brought us closer together as a team; it made us even more determined to do our job for the supporters and the country. In the end, it was an emotional way for myself and Mahela to sign off from our Twenty20 international careers."

"Interviewer: As a captain, there are naturally different kinds of challenges... did you find the expectations of yourself change too much?"

"It has been a disappointing few months for all of us. We let down the fans, we let down the whole country. All we can do is stick to one combination, not try and change the team too much. Quick decisions won't solve this matter, we got to try and be patient."

"We all want this game to be clean and whoever has done something wrong, we want them to bring before the courts and take certain decisions. As captain of the team I have to mention that the cricketers felt really uncomfortable the last few days because they are the ones who came forward and reported this to ICC [International Cricket Council] and SLC"

"I can't deny or accept that these things happened. But, I can promise that there will be no mercy for any member found guilty of misconduct. As players, we don't play to lose and you get hurt when spectators say things like this. Fans are also hurt when we lose and you have to look at it from both ways. I am not admitting or denying anything. But I have been asked to submit a report which I will do during the next few days."

"Angelo's such a world-class player because he's so adaptable and he's got such a strong defence as well. It was a plan we wanted to play out and obviously when he started walking across his stumps a little bit, Wags decided that at some stage he was going to try and bowl the miracle ball and try and hit the base of leg stump. In the end it obviously split his defence and went on to the stumps."

"The fact that we are coming as underdogs releases the pressure. Yes, we didn't do well in the Asia Cup but we're getting better day by day. I'm confident of my team's progress."

"We can't call Afghanistan minnows. They beat all the teams in the qualifiers and progressed. We are taking them very seriously. They can upset any team. We have to really play well to beat Afghanistan. They're really tough. It (2015 WC) was a very close game. They really fought hard against us. We have to fight well. If we play to our potential, we can beat them."

"You would always prefer to give back to your own country first but the way Mahela conducted himself as a player for Sri Lanka over the years has been exemplary"

"I’m very disappointed that a national captain, within a few months of retirement, has been retained by another team at a World Cup. I had a lot of respect and gratitude for Mahela’s knowledge but now he’s adviser to a competing team of ours."

"We had a very good side with an experienced batting lineup and strong variety in our bowling but going into the tournament, it was not the most settled time for Sri Lankan cricket, with some disputes going on. But all of this actually brought us closer together as a team; it made us even more determined to do our job for the supporters and the country. In the end, it was an emotional way for myself and Mahela to sign off from our Twenty20 international careers."

"Mahela is a class player so it would be great to have him back and in the form he was in before he got injured [injured his thigh during a cricket game]"

"A prolific, elegant and utterly classy batsman with a huge appetite for runs, and a calm yet authoritative captain - those are the qualities that best describe Mahela Jayawardene. His sheer quality as a batsman was never in doubt even when he just entered the international scene, but for Jayawardene the biggest challenge has been to justify all the early hype. With over 10,000 runs in both Tests and ODIs - and a captaincy stint that included a World Cup final appearance - it can safely be said that he has met that challenge more than adequately. Blessed with excellent hand-eye coordination and a fine technique, Jayawardene scores his runs all around the wicket. Among his favourite strokes are the languid cover-drive - often with minimal footwork but precise placement and timing - and the wristy flick off his legs, but there are several others he plays with equal felicity. The most memorable are the cuts and dabs he plays behind the stumps, mostly off spinners, but also against quick bowling, when bat makes contact with ball delightfully late. Apart from his artistry, what stands out about his batting is his hunger for big scores, most apparent in his record 624-run partnership with Kumar Sangakkara, but also in the regularity with which he notches up Test double-hundreds. And his century against Zimbabwe in the World Twenty20 in 2010 was a shining example of traditional methods succeeding in a new format. Jayawardene is easily one of the most elegant batsmen of his generation, but the major drawback in his career is his relative lack of success in overseas conditions. His averages in Australia, England, South Africa and New Zealand are all less than 35, but at home he averages more than 60. In the second half of his career, Jayawardene grew into an astute captain who read the game well and wasn't afraid to take risks. Under him, Sri Lanka shed their diffident approach, winning Tests in England and New Zealand, and - in what was Jayawardene's greatest achievement as captain - reached the final of the 2007 World Cup. He quit captaincy in February 2009, but agreed to a second stint, taking over from Tillakaratne Dilshan after the tour to South Africa in 2011-12, but resigned again after a year, handing the reins to Angelo Mathews. His limited overs batting has improved with age, and an increasing stroke repertoire has seen Jayawardene become almost as impressive an innovator at the crease, as he is a technician. An unbeaten 103 from 88 balls in the 2011 World Cup final made plain his limited overs prowess, and marked him out as a big-match player, having already made a century in the semi-final of the same tournament four years ago."

"We should not play like Australia or India or England — we should play like Sri Lanka."

"There is so much uncertainty in cricket. One day you can get a hundred, the next day you can be dismissed for a zero. It makes you become practical about things. Teaches you to accept both success and failure. I think I have learnt a lot about life from cricket."

"He wants to learn new things and to evolve as a cricketer. What you have to understand is that Joe hasn't played that much T20 cricket, he hasn't had that much experience of playing in the subcontinent, he's still finding his way. So for him to go out in a tough situation [referring to a great game between England and South Africa, where Joe Root's 83 from 44 balls led to an achieved target of 230 to beat South Africa] - probably the situation dictated the way he had to play, started slowly but to keep up with the run rate he had to be innovative. But he just kept his cool, made sure the guys around him do a bit of work as well, so when you look at the bigger concept, he's the guy that England would want to do that kind of role for them in this tournament. [He is a] good all-round cricketer, there are about four-five young good players in this tournament that everyone is going to look out for and he is one of them"

"My role with England is to help develop their cricketers, and to help with how they should approach different challenges - like playing spin. The pools hadn't been decided when I agreed to do it. England didn't hire me to give information on the Sri Lankan team. They have analysts and coaches to do that. I'm quite disappointed to see those comments from the board, to be fair."