“There’s always something to chase”
Coren: You are considered one of Sri Lanka’s greatest batsmen, you’re a national icon, you are an incredible ambassador for your country and for the game. Do you feel pressure being a role model to so many people?
KS: It’s a sport followed with a lot of passion but in Sri Lanka it’s just a little bit more than a sport. We’re crazy about it. In times of strife, cricket has been an amazing panacea for the country. So, that said, being a role model and carrying myself well on the field and off the field is something that – not just myself – but the entire team really takes a lot of pride in.
Coren: You said that cricket is more than just a sport and I guess that rings true considering what your country has been through – 30 years of civil war and it was cricket that bought the country together.
KS: It was, definitely. Cricket has played a pivotal role in social integration and harmony. And we’ve also represented an ideal Sri Lanka – the team itself comprises of all ethnicities, all religions. In the cricket team it’s been that same kind of utopian feel where, you know, you exist in absolute harmony, you play together, you win or lose together and I think that’s been a kind of…very attractive notion to the larger Sri Lankan society. And to see through the cricket team, on the cricket field, carrying their hopes on their shoulders, I think that’s really inspired the society to embrace us and also kind of aspire to a higher ideal.
Coren: Let’s talk about your stats because they are phenomenal. You’re currently ranked number 1 test batsman in the world by the ICC – a position that you have dominated since 2005. You’ve played 128 tests with a batting average of 58.76, which – let’s face it – is incredibly high. You’ve made 10 double centuries, only second to the great Don Bradman. You’re also a brilliant wicket keeper contributing to the third highest number of dismissals for a one-day international. Anything else you want to achieve?
KS: [Laughter] Well, I think there’s always something to chase. If there isn’t…I think that’s the day you gotta pack up and walk away. I’m chasing a world cup. I have six months within which to prepare and achieve one before I finish with the game and I’ve been embraced as, you know, a common son when it comes to Sri Lanka, so I’ve been very, very lucky.
Coren: You’re clearly a world-class athlete with an incredible skill set…how do you get that good?
KS: Well…it’s just a case of…working a bit hard, day in and day out…
Coren: Hard work – is that what you put it down to?
KS: Well, I think so, also I think it’s…you know, talent and potential. Everyone’s got talent, everyone’s got potential…you’ve got to really find a method and a strategy that really works for you to kind of realize, you know, that potential, at least…not fully maybe but at least to some extent that allows you to be successful.
Coren: Now, I understand that you came into cricket by accident. Is that true?
KS: Yes [laughs]….I…um…when it comes to actual cricket I was quite a late starter. I see kids now at 7 or 8 starting cricket. I started when I was about 12, 13 but seriously switched when I was about 16, 17. And I was…like I said, I was lucky. Sri Lanka’s greatest achievement was the 1996 World Cup win. The same side went to England in 1999 and we got knocked out in the first round. And the entirety of Sri Lanka was disappointed, but that was the one piece of luck that I needed for my career – it’s a bit crude to say but it’s actually true because the moment they got knocked out, there was a huge call for younger players, young blood, you know, we need to get rid of the old guards. So suddenly I was carried along with that wave and I suddenly replaced and iconic player – Romesh Kaluwitharana – in the Sri Lankan side. So in my life, the unfortunate incident of us getting knocked out was probably the most favourable for me.
Coren: Because you’d been studying law at university, following in your father’s footsteps as well as playing cricket, but it was Sri Lanka’s 1996 cricket victory that cemented your decision to play for your country.
KS: Yes, that inspired me to kind of think that I…you know, that I could play. I wanted to play. But then I really looked at myself as a player and I knew that I was far below the expected standard – I wasn’t even spoken of in the same breath. I think I came into my own when I was about 21 just before I broke into the national side I really struggled to really believe that I was able to stand up to what was expected of me or to be able to do what needed to be done as an international cricketer.
Coren: You grew up in Kandy in a high achieving family – the youngest of four, your father was an attorney. Your father is quite a tough critic, I read an interview from last year where he said that you can do better. Is it that mentality that drives you?
KS: Um…not exactly, I’m quite different in my way of thinking, you know, when it comes to that. He’s very exacting. Better, he doesn’t mean in terms of performance per se. It’s also to do with the way I play the game in the sense of technique, he’s a great believer in perfection, and I’m a believer in excellence. So we have….this eternal argument on this. But I think the way he looks at it is very simple. If you are in control of what you do, then it is your responsibility to ensure that you explore the avenues that you have to become as close to perfect as possible.
Coren: Speaking of your father, he showed amazing conviction and strength of character in 1983 at the start of the civil war, which would plague Sri Lanka for the next 30 years. He and your mother took in 35 Tamil friends who would otherwise have been killed. I know you were just a child at the time but how did your shape your values?
KS: I don’t know whether otherwise they would have been killed or not but at that time security was a concern and they were friends…you know, there was no label attached to them, they were just some of our closest friends. I think it was an amazing thing to do. I look back upon it now and I think they’ve displayed some of the characteristics that they’ve tried to inculcate in us – just common decency, courtesy, respect and love.
Coren: When you look back at the civil war, and the violence and suicide bombings, how does that make you feel – knowing what your country endured for so long?
KS: Well…it….you go through a whole gamut of different emotions, you know, you feel the sadness, the anger, the frustration, the what-might-have-beens…you know, all these emotions and questions go through your mind. But, you have to be realistic as well, it was a dark time for our country, a lot of people paid the ultimate price with their lives for that conflict, in that conflict, there’s a whole generation of children who grew up with that, that constant threat of war and suicide bombings, not just in the south but in the north and the east as well. And all over Sri Lanka there was a pervasive atmosphere of fear and foreboding. And I remember driving down the traffic in Colombo and sometimes you stop at a red light and you’re always thinking, you know, what if a bomb goes off now? It’s strange. But you look at Sri Lanka now, look at my children now, to not have that fear, to send them to school knowing that there is very little threat and I’m very, very thankful and grateful for that. There’s a lot to do in terms of work to raise Sri Lanka up to where we want Sri Lanka to be but I think there’s an immensely strong foundation now set and hopefully lessons learned.
Coren: Well, 3rd of March 2009, you and your team are in Pakistan on tour after India and Australia decided not to go for security reasons. You were heading to the stadium in Lahore when gunmen opened fire on the bus that you were travelling in. Talk us through that terrifying experience.
KS: Yes well….I think when we were in that situation, we had no time to really be scared. We were heading into, I think, the third day of a test match. I remember one of our fast bowlers making the comment – ‘oh I hope something happens so we can just go home.’ And not even 20 seconds later we hear gun shots and we’re asked to just hit the deck, which we did. And there’s nothing else you can do really. You’re not in control of anything else, you’re not driving the bus, you’re not part of the security convoy. Unfortunately the six security personnel in front in one of our cover jeeps were wiped out in about 10 seconds, a couple of the other outriders on bikes were also killed, and then we’re just at a standstill being shot at.
Coren: What was going through your mind? Because you’re one of 6 players who were hit…
KS: Yes, I was hit in the shoulder and another teammate next to me Thilan Samaraweera was seriously injured when a bullet went through the back of thigh all the way up to the top of his knee. But there was no….I don’t think I was thinking anything, other than the fact that ‘just keep your head down and hopefully you won’t get hit and even if you do, like I said, hopefully not in the head.’ But it is also humbling that people really felt for us. I met an army personnel manning a roadblock after I came back and he stopped my vehicle – and such a dangerous job because if they stop the correct vehicle carrying explosives….that’s….that’s the end of….not just his job but his life. So he stopped me and recognized me and said ‘oh I’m so sorry how are you?’ And I said I’m fine and he said ‘you know we were so upset when you got shot and the team was being attacked.’ And I said, you know, ‘but you go through that everyday.’ And he looked at me and said ‘yes but you guys are heroes.’ I felt so touched…so moved…that…he’s the real hero, you know, putting his life on the line everyday in the service of his country and then he looks at us and he feels so much empathy and compassion towards us. I think that was…that really made me feel very, very happy that I was Sri Lankan, living in this country.
Coren: You were invited to give the Cowdrey lecture. And you spoke with such eloquence and passion and pride and authority. But it did rock the boat. Was that your intention?
KS: No, my intention was not to rock the boat but my intention was…that was part of my story. And it was not a huge secret It was about four lines out of a talk that lasted 57 minutes, and it was also very constructive – the four lines that I spoke about. I don’t think anyone had to get upset and the fact is that the large majority did not get upset or didn’t view it negatively at all. My story was about Sri Lankan cricket and not just about playing the game but what makes us Sri Lankan and how we play the game in a Sri Lankan manner and how much pride I take in the fact that I am Sri Lankan, that I am part of this wonderful sport and this wonderful country, being able to do what I love every day and bring so much joy to so many people.
Coren: It certainly was a brilliant speech if I say so myself
(KS: Thank you.) But in those four lines, where you probably did ruffle some feathers you spoke about corruption within the Sri Lankan Cricket Board. Were there repercussions for you?
KS: No, there weren’t repercussions that affected me personally at all. I think there were discussions had with me, and I was able to answer every single question very, very directly and very truthfully, and I think once they saw the fact that in the larger context of my speech even those four lines were actually constructive. I think they all understood that it was nothing to be worried about.
Coren: Now you made the cricket world cup final in 2007 against Australia and lost. In 2009 you became captain and led your country to world cup final against India, again you lost. To come so close to victory and fail twice – was that crushing?
KS: I think…I’d actually say four times, because 2007 was the 50 over World Cup Final, 2009 we got to the T20 World Cup finals, 2011 again was the 50 over World Cup final and 2012 again the T20 World Cup finals. So four finals we lost. I always think that it’s better to lose in the preliminary rounds rather than get to the final. The moment you get to the finals, the expectations are such that losing is devastating, it’s really crushing.
Coren: Why did you resign from captaincy after the World Cup 2011?
KS: Well there were two parts of the story. One, when I took over the assignment in 2009 when the former captain – Mahela Jayawardene – resigned, I knew for a fact that mine was a two year term. The 2011 World Cup was my goal and once that was over, I was pretty much set. Six months before the world cup I had already informed the selectors of my decision to step down. At the same time, I had issues with the facts…the way I was able to lead my team and to be able to have a certain sense of independence to do what I thought was right. So I didn’t want to end up being frustrated as the captain of the side because I don’t think that’s a healthy place to be. And I think there were other suitable candidates for that particular job.
Coren: Kumar, word is that you will retire after the world cup in Australia and New Zealand next year. Is this true?
KS: Yea, I’ve been contemplating it. I’ve retired from T20 cricket, I’m playing two formats of the game. I think my one-day career is definitely done after the World Cup and even if I extend my career a year onwards from here, I only play about 7 – 9 more test matches. So I’ve really got to sit down with the selectors especially with Sanath Jayasuriya, and really discuss whether that’s worthwhile thing for the team. So I think that’s a tough ask so maybe with the consent of the selectors it might be the World Cup and nothing beyond.
Coren: So that’s a yes? We’ve got the scoop?
KS: [Laughter] I wouldn’t say you have the scoop but I will tell you that it is something that I’m seriously thinking of.
Coren: There are concerns about the future of Sri Lankan cricket after you retire as well as the likes of Mahela, Dilshan, Malinga. The country will have lost their awesome foursome, which is fundamentally what you boys are. Then go back to the building blocks and start again. Is that a concern?
KS: No that’s just the reality of playing sport, that’s it. Every once in a while you get players who dominate – in Sri Lanka we’ve had players year after year doing this, so I don’t think we’re anything special, we’ve done our job pretty well for the country, and now it’s the turn of other people to take the responsibility up. And looking at the bench strength we have, they’re more than capable of not just matching us but I think some of these guys will do much better than we’ve done.
Coren: You mention the World Cup next year and what that would mean to Sri Lanka and to you. Do you think it’s possible?
KS: Yes it’s possible, definitely. Will we be ready for it? Yes we will be. I hate being the soothsayer, as you know, trying to tell you what will happen in that world cup but we’re going to give it our best shot without a doubt. We have the variety in our make up to really compete. We’ve just got to ensure that we’re up to it every single game we play. Let’s wait and see – it’ll be huge. – ‘CNN Talk Asia’