diff --git a/pkg/cri/sbserver/metrics.go b/pkg/cri/sbserver/metrics.go
index 99b3f5d66..ddf71af35 100644
--- a/pkg/cri/sbserver/metrics.go
+++ b/pkg/cri/sbserver/metrics.go
@@ -38,7 +38,7 @@ var (
 
 func init() {
 	// these CRI metrics record latencies for successful operations around a sandbox and container's lifecycle.
-	ns := metrics.NewNamespace("containerd", "cri", nil)
+	ns := metrics.NewNamespace("containerd", "cri_sandboxed", nil)
 
 	sandboxListTimer = ns.NewTimer("sandbox_list", "time to list sandboxes")
 	sandboxCreateNetworkTimer = ns.NewTimer("sandbox_create_network", "time to create the network for a sandbox")