IPL 2021: Rajasthan Royals appoint Kumar Sangakkara as their team’s Director of Cricket

The Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Rajasthan Royals (RR) have appointed former Sri Lankan captain Kumar Sangakkara as their team’s Director of Cricket for upcoming season of the world’s biggest T20 tournament.

“Kumar brings a wealth of cricket knowledge both as a player and a leader,” Mike Fordham, Group CEO of Rajasthan Royals, said in a statement.

“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,” Fordham added.

Adding some 𝗹𝗲𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗿𝘆 to the #RoyalsFamily. 💗#WelcomeSanga | #HallaBol | @KumarSanga2 pic.twitter.com/4zREps1PlW

— Rajasthan Royals (@rajasthanroyals) January 24, 2021

The 43-year-old Sanga expressed his excitement in response to the announcement made by the Royals, stating that he is looking forward to work with the 2008 IPL winner.

“Thrilled to be on board and look forward to working with everyone. #HallaBol #RoyalsFamily,” tweeted Sangakkara.

Thrilled to be on board and look forward to working with everyone. #HallaBol #RoyalsFamily https://t.co/AHj0t7NJfh

— Kumar Sangakkara (@KumarSanga2) January 24, 2021

The appointment was made days after Royals released Australian superstar Steve Smith and named Sanju Samson as the new captain.

Samson played 14 matches in IPL 2020 – which was played behind closed doors in the United Arab Emirates because of the COVID-19 pandemic – and scored 311 runs with the help of three fifties.

The Royals have retained England stars Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler and Jofra Archer in their squad, which Smith led last year and hauled them off the bottom of the eight-team tournament.

Meanwhile, Robin Uthappa has been traded to Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in an all-cash deal.

List of players retained by Rajasthan Royals:

Sanju Samson, Ben Stokes, Jofra Archer, Jos Buttler, Mahipal Lomror, Manan Vohra, Mayank Markande, Rahul Tewatia, Riyan Parag, Shreyas Gopal, Robin Uthappa, Jaydev Unadkat, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Anuj Rawat, Kartik Tyagi, David Miller, Andrew Tye.

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