Kumar Sangakkara is not done with cricket yet: Yehali

The saying goes that 'behind every successful man there is a woman', and when she is as beautiful as Yehali, success is bound to follow. Kumar Sangakkara's better half, sitting in the confines of the Sathi Coomaraswamy Stand, was in a cheerful mood as she watched her husband walk out to a guard of honour at the P Sara Oval on Thursday .

For the cricketing world, Sangakkara is calling time on his 15-year Test career but Yehali reveals that her husband is not done with cricket yet. "I don't think he'll give up cricket altogether. For the next 2-3 years, he'll continue to play a bit of cricket. He'll be going back to England for county cricket and he's playing in the Big Bash this December. As a sportsman it's a little hard to give up something he's done for 15 years. Thereafter, life will go on. We've managed to build a life away from cricket, Yehali told TOI.

In this day and age, when WAGs are considered a distraction for cricketers in some parts of the world - including India - Yehali never misses out on a tour with Kumar. "We always travel with him on tour. He believes it's good to have family around him when he is away from home. On tours, on his off-days he spends the time with us (Yehali and children Swyree and Kavith)," she said.

Kumar's wife has been with him every step of the way since college. Sangakkara had his days of struggle when he was failing to move up the ranks at the Nondescripts Cricket Club (NCC) but Yehali was always there to support him. Asked what makes Sangakkara tick, she said, "We are blessed to have a very supportive family. Kumar's parents and siblings are very supportive. He always believes in doing the right thing. He says, 'If you do the right thing, good will follow'. He has always taken responsibility on himself rather than pointing fingers at others."