IPL 2021: Rajasthan Royals appoint Kumar Sangakkara as director of cricket

Image Source : AP Kumar Sangakkara
Rajasthan Royals on Sunday introduced the appointment of former Sri Lankan captain Kumar Sangakkara because the director of cricket for the upcoming season of the Indian Premier League.
Sangakkara, the present president of the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), shall be liable for overseeing the whole cricketing ecosystem of the Royal’s franchise together with teaching construction, public sale plans and crew technique, expertise discovery and improvement, in addition to the event of the Royals Academy in Nagpur, the franchise mentioned in a press release.

“It’s a privilege to be joining the Rajasthan Royals and I am excited about the new challenge. To oversee the cricket strategy of a franchise in the leading cricket competition in the world, as well as building the development programs and cricketing infrastructure that will provide the future foundation of the IPL team’s on-field success, is an opportunity that really motivated me,” mentioned Sangakkara whereas commenting on his appointment.
“I have really enjoyed speaking to the leadership group over the recent weeks and can’t wait to get going. The team includes some of the world’s best players and great personalities so it’s going to be fun and very exciting to work with this group,” he added.
Newly appointed captain Sanju Samson mentioned: “He (Sangakkara) is someone who has had an exceptional cricket career himself and obviously understands the modern game. It’s great to have an all-time wicketkeeping great with us, he is someone who’s donned many hats, he was a fantastic keeper-batsman, he’s led Sri Lanka with grace and class throughout and has done it for years with the Sri Lankan national team across formats.”

“He’s someone who’s shown great character both on and off the field and the values that one associate with him are the same which we embody here at Rajasthan Royals. It is wonderful to have someone like him at the helm and is going to be fantastic to learn from him. I can’t wait to get started and work with him in the coming seasons,” Samson added.
Sangakkara scored over 28,000 runs for Sri Lanka over a vastly profitable 16-year and has the best Test batting common of any participant within the final 46 years.
The southpaw first graced the IPL in its inaugural season again in 2008, and began with a trendy fifty on debut in opposition to MS Dhoni’s CSK. That first season noticed him amass 320 runs in 10 video games, guiding Kings XI Punjab to a top-four end.
The following seasons noticed the southpaw preserve the consistency that folks got here to count on of him, scoring persistently over 300 runs in his first 4 seasons.
In his closing IPL season, again in 2013, Sangakkara turned up as a frontrunner for the Sunrisers Hyderabad, main the crew each on and off the pitch, serving to them safe a playoff spot in a unprecedented method.
Welcoming Kumar to the household, Mike Fordham, Group CEO Rajasthan Royals, mentioned: “Kumar brings a wealth of cricket knowledge both as a player and a leader. We are thrilled to have him join the team and we are confident that Kumar will motivate, challenge and inspire our players and coaches that will translate to success on the field.”