Lord’s Ground tweeted that Jayawardene was the latest inductee to MCC.

According to the Lord’s website, Jayawardene said, “It is an honour to be awarded Honorary Life Membership of MCC. It’s a great Club and I’m privileged to now be a part of it. I’ve always enjoyed playing at Lord’s, and the MCC Members have always given me a great reception, so to be given this accolade is extra special. The Club does brilliant work both in the UK and overseas and I’m delighted to now be a part of it.”

Jayawardene retired from all formats at the end of ICC Cricket World Cup 2015, having already called it a day from Test cricket and Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is) in 2014.

Jayawardene, along with Kumar Sangakkara, were two of Sri Lanka’s best batsmen for over a decade. Their combined retirements have meant that Sri Lanka are now in a bit of a fix with their batting.

Jayawardene played 149 Tests in an 18-year international career, and scored 11,814 runs at an average of 49.84.

The MCC is cricket’s rule-making body, having been founded in the early 1800s. Mike Gatting is the current chairman of MCC. Lord’s, the cricket ground that houses the MCC, has two entries in Jayawardene’s name. He scored 107 in 2002 and 119 in 2006.

Jayawardene is one of the most widely-respected batsmen of his era, and is frequently rated among Sri Lanka’s greatest ever batsmen. It is fitting that he has been honoured with a lifetime membership at cricket’s oldest governing body.