“I Can Still Bowl 24 Balls,” Lasith Malinga Rules Out Retirement Speculations

Sri Lankan speedster Lasith Malinga has said he is fit enough to bowl 4 overs in the match. Malinga was captaining the side when Sri Lanka won the T20 World Cup 2014. Adding to it he is confident enough that he will play the World Cup 2021 which be hosted by BCCI in UAE and Oman.

He is hands down the best fast bowler produced by Sri Lankan cricket. He dominated the world cricket in his prime with his Fierce Yorkers. Malinga brought a weird look with the weird and unique action on the field that a batsman always feared.

The 37-year-old Lasith Malinga has represented his national side in 84 T20i matches. He was able to pick 107 wickets at an average of 20.8 and an economy of 7.42. In the T20 World Cup, Malinga has played 31 matches and picked 38 wickets at an average of 20.07 and an economy of 7.43.

Few deliveries in cricket are as lethal as a Lasith Malinga yorker 🎯

Have we seen the last of him in a Sri Lanka shirt? 🤔pic.twitter.com/g33rTWnFtO

— Sport360° (@Sport360) June 21, 2021

Lasith Malinga has contributed a lot of match-winning performances for the team. However, he hasn’t been part of international cricket since March 2020. Malinga has been facing a lot of fitness issues, he failed to clear a 2km run of SLC policy in the given time limit on basis of which national selection is made. Also due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Malinga has taken a step back from the international scene to think about his future.

The veteran pacer has opined that he can still bowl 24 good deliveries and he is good enough to play T20s for the team. The reason he is staying back is the 2km fitness test.

“It’s not about the T20 World Cup, I’m not going to retire. I can still bowl 24 balls. I am not able to complete the 2km and run. That’s why I’m staying home. I can however bowl for about two hours without any issue. I can bowl 24 straight balls, I can even bowl 200 balls, but because of the 2km fitness test, I’m staying home because I know I can’t complete it,” Malinga said while featuring on Russel Arnold’s YouTube show

“I took 4 wickets in 4 balls against New Zealand at Kandy, I was 35 years old at that time. Nobody complained about my tummy or fitness on that occasion,” Malinga asserted.

Lasith Malinga has retired from Test and ODIs

Lasith Malinga has retired from Test and ODIs and also has left the franchise cricket. He is only available for the Sri Lanka T20I team so he is eagerly waiting to be part of the team in the 2021 T20 World Cup.