The president made the offer speaking at the farewell ceremony held at the end of the second test match against India in Colombo on Monday (24).

Sangakkara is described as one of the "most polished and prudent of batsmen" in cricket. Along with AB de Villiers, he has dominated the number one spot in the ICC Test batting rankings over the past decade. On 12 August 2015, Kumara Sangakkara was placed at number 5 in the ICC Test rankings.

Sangakkara delivered the 2011 MCC Spirit of Cricket Cowdrey Lecture, which gained worldwide attention. He was the youngest person and the first active international player to deliver that lecture, which was widely acclaimed by the cricketing community for its outspoken nature.

He retired from ODIs on 18 March 2015, against South Africa during the quarter final stage of 2015 ICC Cricket World Cup. He retired from international cricket He retired from Test cricket after the second Test match against India played at the P.Sara Oval in Colombo.

He was named the Wisden Leading Cricketer in the World in 2011 and 2015.