Jayawardene met with national selectors Wednesday and proposed that a new captain must be appointed in order to build a team for the next World Cup — jointly hosted by India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.
"This is something I have been considering for some time as it has been my long-held belief that my successor should have at least 18 months in the job to imprint his vision on the team for the 2011 World Cup," Jayawardene said.
"The right time has now come for fresh leadership to takeover."
The 31-year-old Jayawardene, who was appointed captain in 2006, is the most successful Sri Lankan captain in tests with a win ratio of 62.5 per cent in 26 games.
"It was not an easy decision to make because being Sri Lanka national captain has been the source of enormous pride.
"I am very grateful to have been granted the honor of leading the team during the last three years."
As a captain, Jayawardene scored 11 centuries in tests, and overall he has scored 7,959 test runs in 100 tests at an impressive average of 52.36 with 24 centuries.
He also led in 97 one-day internationals with a success ratio of 57 per cent. Overall in 299 ODIs, Jayawardene has made 8,042 runs at an average of 32.03.
Jayawardene hoped that as a batsman he would continue to play a "major part" in Sri Lanka´s success.
"I look forward now to extending my full support to my successor and hope to play a major part in the team´s success during coming years as a batsman."
Sri Lanka will play two tests in Pakistan, with Karachi hosting the first (Feb. 21-25) and the second at Lahore (March 1-5).
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