Kumar Sangakkara: Sri Lanka great says farewell to first-class cricket

Ex-Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara says he will miss cricket "terribly" but believes he is retiring from the first-class game at the right time.

Sangakkara, 39, made 35 not out in his final first-class innings for Surrey against Lancashire on Wednesday.

He is fifth on the list of all-time run scorers in Test cricket, with 12,400 runs in 134 appearances.

"Sometimes you hold on a bit too long and I always think it's better to let go a bit sooner than later," he said.

Left-handed batsman Sangakkara, who will turn 40 on 27 October, ended his first-class career with 20,911 runs.

Almost 1,500 of those runs came for Surrey in the County Championship this season at an average of 106.50.

He told BBC Sport: "I'll miss it terribly, without a doubt, but that's a good thing. A lot of players walk away bitter and upset and regretting a lot of the things that might have been.
"I walk away with a few regrets, like anyone would, but I'm absolutely happy with the way I played the game and what I've achieved.
"The game goes on and that's the beauty of any sport. It doesn't matter who retires or who comes into play - the sport will be bigger than all of us."
He will continue playing in overseas T20 leagues in 2018.