Jasprit Bumrah, Kumar Sangakkara lead wishes as Lasith Malinga announces retirement from T20 cricket

Published Sep 14, 2021 19:50 IST

Veteran Sri Lankan pacer Lasith Malinga announced his T20 retirement on Tuesday, which marked his retirement from all forms of the game.

Malinga had announced his retirement from Tests in 2011 and ODIs in 2019. Earlier this year, Lasith Malinga bid farewell to franchise cricket after being released by Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Mumbai Indians.

Meanwhile, lots of wishes came in for the celebrated pace bowler on social media soon after his announcement. Jasprit Bumrah, who shared the new ball for Mumbai Indians alongside Lasith Malinga, posted a heartfelt note for the pacer.

Former Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara, who saw Lasith Malinga grow as a cricketer, also posted a warm message. Sangakkara also wished Malinga luck in his second innings.

"Today I have decided to give 100 percent rest to my T20 bowling shoes" - Lasith Malinga

The 38-year-old Lasith Malinga, who led Sri Lanka to the T20 World Cup title in 2014, shared a heartwarming message while announcing his retirement. He said:

However, Lasith Malinga vouched to remain closely connected to the game and share his knowledge with youngsters.

Laith Malinga, the first bowler to pick up 100 T20 wickets, finishes with 107 scalps at a strike rate of 16.60, an economy of 7.07 and an average of 19.68.

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Ankush is a cricket journalist at Sportskeeda covering news, listicles, features, and exclusives. A graduate in Commerce and an accountant by qualification, Ankush followed his true calling for sports journalism, and today, has over 8 years of experience having working for the likes of Sportzwiki and Cricfit. Ankush places a very high emphasis on factual accuracy in his articles and believes in representing the true image of the story. Writing in the simplest and most easy-to-understand language possible, especially for those not well-versed with English, is one of his strengths.

Ankush, who captained his state in the National School games, is a big fan of Ravichandran Ashwin. He admires his unconventional thinking and his eagerness to keep learning despite being a legend of the game. His favorite cricket team is Australia because of their mentality and fighting spirit, and them beating India in the 2003 World Cup final left a lasting impression on him.

Apart from watching and covering cricket, Ankush also likes to read books whenever possible.

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