World Cup 2019: Lasith Malinga bids farewell to his special stage

Lasith Malinga is expected to retire from ODI cricket during the Sri Lanka-Bangladesh ODI series which will played in Colombo later this month.

Lasith Malinga and Virat Kohli after Sri Lanka’s World Cup match against India at Headingley on Saturday (Reuters Photo)

Lasith Malinga scalped only the one wicket – of top scorer KL Rahul – and gave away 82 runs against India in Sri Lanka’s last World Cup group match at Headingley on Saturday. That one wicket meant that the 35-year-old Malinga bowed out of the World Cup stage with 56 wickets in the history of cricket’s premier tournament. Only Glenn Mcgrath and Muttiah Muralitharan have more World Cup wickets to their name.

Sri Lanka fans pay homage to Lasith Malinga as his World Cup career comes to an end!

What’s your favourite Malinga moment?#LionsRoar pic.twitter.com/uLFLBS6mjr

— Cricket World Cup (@cricketworldcup) July 6, 2019

Malinga was seen being congratulated on his stellar ODI career – spanning four World Cups since the 2007 edition – after the Sri Lanka match. Virat Kohli, who was unbeaten when the winning runs were hit, walked up to Malinga and put his arm around the legend.

Malinga bows out of the World Cup stage as the only bowler to take 10+ wickets in four editions, the only bowler to take four wickets in four balls, the only bowler to take two hat-tricks.

Hardik Pandya, who was on strike when Malinga bowled his last over of the day and the World Cup, was also seen sharing a laugh with Malinga, his Mumbai Indians teammate.

Another heartwarming moment came about before the start of the match, when Malinga and Jasprit Bumrah, Mumbai Indians teammates and yorker specialists par excellence, were seen sharing a joke and a respectful shake of the hands.

The bonding of Malinga – Bumrah, legacy of yorker continues.

Thank you, Mali. pic.twitter.com/d6i2y0USGC

— Johns (@CricCrazyJohns) July 6, 2019

Speaking after the match, Rohit Sharma said, “Malinga has been a champion bowler for Sri Lanka and then for Mumbai Indians. I have had a great time playing with him. He is a matchwinner.”

Lasith Malinga is expected to retire from ODI cricket during the Sri Lanka-Bangladesh ODI series which will played in Colombo later this month.