Centurion: Sri Lanka fast bowler Lasith Malinga has announced his decision to retire from international cricket after next year’s Twenty20 World Cup.
The 35-year-old Sri Lankan cricketer also ruled himself out of the first six games in IPL 2019 in a bid to make it to his country’s World Cup squad.
“After the World Cup, my cricketing career is ending”, he said on Friday.
Malinga said that he would quit one-day internationals after the World Cup in England and Wales this summer before calling time on his career following the Twenty20 tournament, being played in Australia over October-November 2020. “I want to play in the T20 World Cup and then end my career.”
He also said after his his side were beaten by 16 runs by South Africa in the second Twenty20 international at SuperSport Park. Malinga dismissed South African top-scorer Reeza Hendricks for 65 on Friday, his 97th T20 international wicket. He is one short of the world record of 98 held by Pakistan’s Shahid Afridi.
Malinga is best known for his ability to take consecutive wickets, with in-swinging yorkers: he is the only bowler in the world to have two World Cup hat-tricks, the only bowler to have taken three hat-tricks in ODIs and the only player to have taken four wickets in four consecutive balls in any form of international cricket.
On 22 April 2011, he announced his retirement from Test cricket. (Agencies)
