Kumar Sangakkara alleges discrimination by Ryanair staff at Dublin Airport

Former Sri Lanka cricket captain Kumar Sangakkara has accused Ryanair gate personnel at Dublin Airport of discriminatory and threatening behaviour while travelling with his family.

The legendary wicketkeeper batter took to X on Wednesday, October 28, to express his disappointment, describing the experience as shocking and unacceptable.

"Has anyone experienced discriminatory gate personnel @Ryanair in Dublin?" Sangakkara wrote.

"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."

The 48 year old did not reveal the exact circumstances that led to the confrontation but appeared particularly upset by the way the airline's personnel treated his family.

Sangakkara responds to fellow Sri Lankan's comment

His post also drew a response from a fellow Sri Lankan, Sanjiva Weerawarana, who shared his own experiences of discrimination abroad.

"Kumar, I have experienced discrimination in every part of the west. I lived there for 16 years, traveled back and forth for another 25 and now I'm done," Weerawarana wrote.

He added that he no longer wished to travel there unless necessary, citing his experiences of being mistreated.

Responding to his comment, Sangakkara wrote: "It is quite jarring when you experience it @sanjiva."

The exchange highlighted how deeply the alleged incident had affected the former Sri Lankan captain.

Sangakkara, who represented Sri Lanka in 134 Tests, 404 ODIs and 56 T20Is, is regarded as one of the greatest batters in cricket history.

His allegations have brought attention to the treatment of passengers by airline personnel.

At the time of writing, Ryanair's response to Sangakkara's allegations could not be independently confirmed.