Jayawardene will 'miss the music the most'

As the flags fly and the papare plays for one final time for Mahela Jayawardene in Colombo, he admits he may become a little emotional. The city whose grounds he has filled since he was 16 has already given him one grand farewell at his final Test in August. They will almost certainly do so again for both Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara, for whom it is also the final ODI at home. This time, Jayawardene said he would like to give thanks to the fans as well, whom he labels "the strength of the Sri Lankan team".

"The best memories of playing at home for me will be the fans - the music, the rhythm and all that," Jayawardene said. "I grew up playing with that for my school. We've always had it when we played the big matches. To finish it off with that same rhythm - you can't ask for anything else. That's the uniqueness about Sri Lankan cricket. That is the flair that we grew up playing with.

"We've probably got the best fans. They do criticise use, but it's done with a good heart. They don't go overboard. They keep turning up whether we do well or not, and they've always been behind us. That's been the strength of the Sri Lankan team. We've thoroughly enjoyed that, so to say thank you tomorrow is a great honour."

Jayawardene has been a staunch supporter of Angelo Mathews' captaincy, and said he is confident the legacy he and Sangakkara leave behind will be improved on by the players coming through, particularly as Sri Lanka have had a rich year in 2014.

"Kumar and I have given as much as we can to the team and our country. We hope to do the same in tomorrow's match. After we leave, Sri Lankan cricket is not going to die. It will go forward. There are many young players to do that. I'm sure they will take that responsibility on."

The opening position has proved troublesome for Sri Lanka throughout the past six months, and though Jayawardene has opened the innings successfully in the past, he could not do so in his most recent attempt, at Pallekele. Sri Lanka have also drafted Test-match opener Dimuth Karunaratne into this squad, and Jayawardene said he may not face the new ball on Tuesday.

"We've still got another opening bat in the squad, but they haven't decided on the combination yet. It depends on that, and I might be asked to open the batting - like the last game. It all depends what they go with. Given the opportunity, I prefer to open, but it all depends on what the team requirement is, looking at the World Cup. I'm happy to bat anywhere."

While Sangakkara is now likely to play Tests for some of 2015, Jayawardene will have quit all formats when the 2015 World Cup ends. He said he had not nailed down post-retirement plans yet.

"Having spent so many years in the game, it might be a healthy thing to stay away from it for a little while. I'll still play a little bit of franchise cricket just to taper it off, and see how my body feels. I'm not looking to be too involved.

"I'll take a bit of time with my family, but the responsibility is there to give back to the game. How and when is something for the future to decide. The environment has to be good. I operate quite differently to others. As long as that environment is there, I'm quite happy to be part of that. I'm just going to take a day at a time and see what happens."