Happy Birthday, Lasith Malinga: The Top Performances of The Yorker King
Source:News18
Sri Lankan Lasith Malinga is widely regarded as one of the finest fast bowlers of all time. The Galle-born has been produced several magical performances with the ball throughout his career. Malinga also captained Sri Lanka during the final stages of the 2014 T20 World Cup at home that culminated in them becoming the champions.
Apart from that, Malinga has been a vital part of Mumbai Indians’ several Indian Premier League winning campaigns. As the veteran turns 38 today, let’s flip the pages and take a look at some of his best bowling performances in the international circuit.
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6/38 vs Kenya, R Premadasa Stadium, 2011
Malinga was on a roll during the 2011 ICC World Cup. The right-arm pacer registered his best ever ODI figures during a group game against Kenya in Colombo in 2011. Batting first in the match, Kenya collapsed to be bowled out for 142. The credit for that goes to Malinga who scalped as many as six batters while giving just 38 runs at an economy of 5.14.
5/28 vs Australia, 2011
Malinga’s another top performance in the 50-over format came against Australia during the third One Day International of a five-match series in 2011. Defending 287 runs in the 50 overs, the hosts were able to script a convincing victory as Malinga returned with a five-wicket haul. He finished with excellent figures of 8.2-28-5 to steer his team to a 78-run win.
5/31 vs England, Pallekele, 2012
During a group game of the T20 World Cup 2012, Sri Lanka defeated England by 19 runs. When England were chasing a score of 170, Malinga triggered a collapse. He picked up a five-wicket haul with England managing 150.
5/6 vs New Zealand, Pallekele, 2019
Sri Lanka didn’t enjoy an ideal outing during the three-match T20I home series against New Zealand. The hosts lost the first two games to lose the series. However, they managed to save their pride by scripting a 37-run victory in the final contest. The credit for the win went to player of the match Malinga who picked up a hat-trick. He destroyed NZ’s batting unit by picking up a five-wicket haul and gave away just six runs in his four overs to register his best T20I figure of all time.
5/50 vs India, Galle, 2010
Sri Lanka had a blistering start in the three-match Test series against India in 2010 as Malinga caused a carnage on the field with the ball. Malinga picked two wickets in the second innings followed by a five-wicket haul in the third innings. The seamer gave away just 55 and 50 runs respectively across both the innings to help Sri Lanka to a 10-wicket win.
