Sangakkara to lead Kings XI

Shirajiv SIRIMANE in India

Sri Lankan skipper Kumar Sangakkara has been appointed as the Captain of the Kings XI in Punjab yesterday for the forthcoming IPL season, the team’s new CEO Anil Srivatsa said.

He replaces Indian player Yuvraj Singh.

Sources say that this was initiated by the coach Tom Moody who preferred to work with Sangakkara whom he has described to be ‘more professional and easy to work with’.

Kings XI Punjab hasn’t done exceptionally well in the past two editions of the IPL. They’ve managed to reach the semi-finals in season one, while season two saw them at number five.

Recently in Nagpur, Yuvraj’s team mate Kumar Sangakkara was asked about this development and said that it was new to him. However, he added that he wasn’t too keen to lead the side even if an offer was made.

“I already have my hands full with the Sri Lankan team. And I believe that an Indian franchise will benefit more for an Indian captain. Kings XI Punjab is a great team to play for and Yuvraj Singh is a great cricketer and a good captain.”

Apart from Yuvraj and Sangakkara, the other members are Mahela Jayawardene, Simon Katich, Irfan Pathan and Sreesanth. Rajkot, Wednesday