\n<\/p>\n
Karunaratne captained Sri Lanka in 30 Tests between 2019 and 2023. He won 12 and lost 12 of his matches in charge with the highlight a 2-0 series win in South Africa.<\/p>\n
He also played 50 one-day internationals – the most recent at the 2023 World Cup – but made his name as a consistent, gritty opener in red-ball cricket.<\/p>\n
Since making his debut in November 2012, Australia’s David Warner is the only opener to have scored more Test runs. <\/p>\n
But he has struggled for form recently, averaging 27.05 in 11 Tests since the start of 2024.<\/p>\n
“Playing 100 Tests is a tough thing to accomplish, especially when you’re an opening batter and you’re doing the dirty work for the team,” Karunaratne said. <\/p>\n
“If I have regrets, one of them would be not being able to get to 10,000 Test runs. <\/p>\n
“I thought the way that I was going in 2017, 2018 and 2019, that I’d have the chance to get there but then Covid hit and Sri Lanka don’t play as many Tests anymore.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n