Sri Lanka middle-order batsman Thilan Samaraweera has retired from international cricket after he was excluded from the squad to play Bangladesh in the first cricket test this week.
Samaraweera says on Wednesday he made up his mind after speaking to chief selector Sanath Jayasuriya and
Sri Lanka Cricket secretary Nishantha Ranatunga about their plans for him.
The right-handed batsman was not in the initial squad for the two-test series against Bangladesh because the selectors said they wanted to groom younger players. But he was drafted into the preliminary squad as a replacement for the injured Mahela Jayawardene.
Samaraweera, who made his debut for Sri Lanka in 1998, has scored 5,462 runs in 81 tests at an impressive average of 48. He scored 14 centuries and 30 half-centuries.