Kumar Sangakkara Alleges "Discriminatory And Threatening Behaviour" By Ryanair: "First Bad Experience"

Kumar Sangakkara has always been known to maintain a calm demeanour, be it on the field or off it. The former Sri Lanka captain, who is a veteran of 134 Tests, 404 ODIs and 56 T20Is, has rarely been known to lose his cool. However, on Wednesday, Sangakkara expressed his anger over alleged discriminatory behaviour by airline staff in Dublin, Ireland. "Has anyone experienced discriminatory gate personnel @Ryanair in Dublin? My family and I just did, and it was shocking. The tone of address, the mishandling of procedures and the threatening behaviour were unacceptable for any passenger. First bad experience in Dublin," he wrote on X.

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

According to Wikipedia, Ryanair is an Irish ultra-low-cost airline headquartered in Swords, County Dublin, Ireland. It is the largest airline in Europe by scheduled passengers carried, fleet size and total flights.

Sanjiva Weerawarana, CEO of WSO2, commented on Sangakkara's post that he has faced "discrimination in every part of the West", to which Sangakkara replied: "It is quite jarring when you experience it."

@sanjiva @Ryanair It is quite jarring when you experience it @sanjiva

— Kumar Sangakkara (@KumarSanga2) October 28, 2026

Ryanair is yet to respond to the allegations. Sangakkara's post has gained widespread attention on social media.

Recently, former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan revealed a stunning on-field spat with Sri Lanka legend Kumar Sangakkara during a Test match in 2005. During the second Test of the three-match series, Sri Lankan players were unhappy with a box of balls being changed. Pathan, who was asked to open the batting for India, was unaware of the discontent and ended up getting into a war of words with Sangakkara.

He revealed that the Sri Lanka legend started sledging him after he hit Muttiah Muralitharan for two sixes and even called the Indian players "cheats".

"There was a Test match in Delhi. I opened and made 93. After the first innings, when we went out to bowl, the box of balls had changed or something like that happened, and the Sri Lankan players were not happy. Sangakkara was the most vocal of all. Then, when I went out to bat, I had zero idea what had happened; I was asked to open. I hit Muralidharan for two sixes. If he is getting hit for sixes with the new ball, it means you have derailed the opposition's planning a bit. Suddenly, Sangakkara started saying, 'You guys cheat, your parents teach you all this,' and blah, blah. He went personal, and I answered back as well. He started it," Pathan said on Cheeky Singles.

However, in 2008, both players became part of Kings XI Punjab in the inaugural season of the Indian Premier League (IPL), and Pathan revealed that they eventually apologised to each other.

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