Angelo Mathews gets guard of honour from Sri Lanka teammates in farewell Test

Angelo Mathews, the veteran all-rounder, had announced his decision to retire after the ongoing first Test between Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, which is being played at the Galle International Stadium. The visiting side batted first and as players took the field for Day 1 of the iconic Test match, the Sri Lankan squad took time to appreciate Mathews with a guard of honour.

This was a great gesture of gratitude shown by Mathews’ teammates, recognizing his invaluable contributions to the Sri Lankan cricket in the red-ball format, ever since his debut 2009. Notably, Mathews played his first-ever Test match at the same venue against Pakistan, and nearly 16 years apart, the 38-year-old will be walking away from the illustrious format, where he also became one of the most successful contributors for the side.

Speaking of the first Test, the Dhananjaya de Silva-led hosts will hope to make the most of the home conditions and gain crucial points in the first-ever match of the new World Test Championship cycle. On the other hand, Bangladesh, led by ace batter Najmul Hossain Shanto, will hope to deliver better performance and start the series with a win. 

Mathews’ legacy in Test Cricket

Mathews started his Test career in 2009. Over the years, he grew into one of the best Test cricketers in the world. The experienced player represented his country in Tests for over 16 years and became one of their best athletes. The star player played 118 Tests for his side (barring the ongoing Test) and scored 8167 runs at an average of 44.62, including 16 hundreds and 45 fifty-plus scores to his name. He is third on the list of highest run-scorers for Sri Lanka in Tests, only behind Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene.

Mathews played a key role in many of Sri Lanka’s top moments in Test cricket, including their fine Test series win against England in their backyard in 2014. While he will not play the second Test of the series against Bangladesh, the entire focus will be on his performance in the Galle Test.