Jayawardene aims to guide Lanka to Cricket WC glory next year

Former Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene retired from Test cricket on Monday vowing to devote his energies towards helping his side win another 50-over World Cup next year in Australia and New Zealand.

Sri Lanka last won the World Cup in 1996 and they were beaten in the final in 2007 and 2011.

The 37-year-old Jayawardene ended his test career on a high as his team defeated Pakistan by 105 runs to take the two-match series 2-0, Sport24 reported.

Victory sparked memorable scenes with the master batsman congratulated by President Mahinda Rajapaksa before being carried around the ground by his teammates amid the lighting of firecrackers.

After the Test victory Jayawardene said that right now he does not have any plans and has not signed any contracts, adding that it all depends on what kind of interest he gets in the next six months or so.

The former skipper said that for him right now the thing is to get himself motivated for the next World Cup, to get himself fit and ready. He said that he cannot guarantee that he will be part of the squad but his focus would be to try to get another winner's medal.

Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara were given a fitting farewell when they retired from Twenty20 cricket as Sri Lanka beat India in the final in Dhaka in April.

Right-hander Jayawardene, who compiled 11,814 runs at an average of 49.84 in his 149 tests, said the most treasured moment of his 17-year international career was getting his hands on his first cap.

Jayawardene made his debut against India in Colombo in 1997 in a match where Sri Lanka amassed the highest total in Test cricket, 952 for six declared, the report added.