Former Sri Lankan captain Kumar Sangakkara had a harrowing experience at Dublin airport on Wednesday, accusing the staff of Irish airline Ryanair of discriminatory behaviour. The incident came to light after Sangakkara took to social media, sharing his ordeal and also alleged that he and his family were threatened by the Ryanair staff at the airline’s gate.
Calling it unacceptable, Sangakkara wrote on X, “Has anyone experienced discriminatory gate personnel @Ryanair in Dublin? I was with my family just now, and it was shocking. The tone of address, the mishandling of procedure, and the threatening behaviour. Unacceptable for any passenger. First bad experience in Dublin.”
However, the 48-year-old did not reveal the exact circumstances that led to the confrontation with the Ryanair staff. Meanwhile, his post quickly went viral on social media, gaining 3.3 million views at the time of writing.
His post drew attention from fellow Sri Lankan IT specialist Sanjiva Weerawarana. “Kumar, I have experienced discrimination in every part of the West. I lived there for 16 years, travelled back and forth for another 25, and now I’m done,” wrote Weerawarana.
In response to Weerawarana, Sangakkara wrote: “It is quite jarring when you experience it @sanjiva.” British journalist and broadcaster Piers Morgan also came in support of Sangakkara and urged Ryanair to address the matter “urgently and properly”.
“Rarely met a more decent, dignified man than Kumar. For him to say this, it must have been truly shameful behaviour. I hope you deal with this urgently & properly @Ryanair,” Piers wrote on X. However, Ryanair is yet to respond on the matter or issue a clarification publicly.
What’s next for Kumar Sangakkara?
Meanwhile, Sangakkara will have a busy next two months, as the Rajasthan Royals head coach prepares to plan ahead of the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL) retention and auction in November and December respectively. While the IPL 2027 auction is set for December 16, the retention deadline is one month prior to the mini-auction.
Sangakkara, who played in the IPL from 2008 to 2013, returned to the cash-rich league in 2021 as the head coach of Rajasthan Royals. In his first season as Rajasthan Royals head coach, the franchise ended their 17-year wait for a final appearance. They finished runners-up to Gujarat Titans.
Sangakkara served as Rajasthan Royals head coach till 2024, before being promoted to the role of Director of Cricket. Rahul Dravid took over as Rajasthan Royals, before Sangakkara once again took over ahead of the IPL 2026 season. In the last season, Rajasthan Royals finished fourth.
One of Sri Lanka’s greatest Test players, Sangakkara played 134 matches, and scored 12400 runs in his 15-year red-ball journey that started in 2000. He retired from the game in 2015.
