Cricket
oi-Ashish Rana
Former Sri Lanka cricket captain Kumar Sangakkara has accused Irish airline Ryanair’s gate staff of discriminatory behaviour at Dublin airport. The Rajasthan Royals head coach has shared his experience on social media, saying he and his family faced threatening behaviour during their interaction with the airline’s personnel.
Former Sri Lanka cricket captain Kumar Sangakkara accused Ryanair gate staff at Dublin Airport of discriminatory and threatening behaviour towards his family. He shared his experience on social media, but Ryanair has not responded, and the circumstances remain unclear.
Sangakkara has expressed shock and disappointment over the incident. However, he has not shared details about what led to the confrontation. Ryanair has not issued a response to his allegations at the time of writing.
Kumar Sangakkara Shares Dublin Airport Experience
Sangakkara has raised concerns about the behaviour of Ryanair’s gate personnel in a post on X. He has questioned whether other passengers have faced similar treatment at Dublin airport.
“Has anyone experienced discriminatory gate personnel @Ryanair in Dublin?” Sangakkara wrote.
He further described his experience with the airline staff, saying, “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.”
Has anyone experienced discriminatory gate personnel @Ryanair in Dublin ? I with my family just did and it was shocking. The tone of address and the mishandling of procedure and threatening behavior. Unacceptable for any passenger. First bad experience in Dublin
— Kumar Sangakkara (@KumarSanga2) October 28, 2026
The 48-year-old former Sri Lankan cricketer has not explained the exact reasons of the incident or provided further details about the interaction.
Fellow Sri Lankan Shares Similar Experience
Sangakkara’s post has also drawn a response from fellow Sri Lankan Sanjiva Weerawarana, who has claimed that he has faced similar experiences during his travels in Western countries.
“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,” Weerawarana wrote.
He has also expressed his unwillingness to travel to those places unless it is necessary.
Responding to Weerawarana, Sangakkara wrote, “It is quite jarring when you experience it @sanjiva.”
@sanjiva @Ryanair It is quite jarring when you experience it @sanjiva
— Kumar Sangakkara (@KumarSanga2) October 28, 2026
Ryanair has not publicly responded to Sangakkara’s allegations at the time of writing. The exact circumstances surrounding the incident also remain unclear.
Kumar Sangakkara’s Cricket Career And Rajasthan Royals Role
Sangakkara is widely regarded as one of Sri Lanka’s greatest cricketers. He retired from international cricket in 2015 after making 594 appearances across all formats. He scored 12,400 runs in Test cricket and 14,234 runs in One Day Internationals.
After retiring from international cricket, Sangakkara continued his association with the game through coaching and leadership roles. He has been serving as the head coach of the Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League.
He returned to the role last year after his earlier stint with the franchise from 2021 to 2024, when he was also promoted to director of cricket. Under his leadership, Rajasthan Royals reached their first IPL final since 2008 in 2022 but lost to the Gujarat Titans. The team finished fourth in the 2026 season.
