Lasith Malinga

Full Name           : Separamadu Lasith Malinga 

Date of Birth       : 28th August 1983 

Place of Birth      : Galle, Sri Lanka 

Nick Name           : Slinga 

Height              : 1.70 m (5 ft 7 in) 

Batting Style       : Right-Handed 

Bowling Style       : Right-Arm Fast 

Role                : Bowler 

Test Debut (cap 99) : 1st July 2004 v Australia 

ODI Debut (cap 123) : 17th July 2004 v United Arab Emirates 

Separamadu Lasith Malinga is a Sri Lankan cricketer.  Lasith Malinga  is a fast bowler with a rare round-arm action, sometimes referred to as a sling action, which leads to his nickname, "Slinga Malinga".  Lasith Malinga  is very well known for his swinging yorkers which has been known to smash batsmen's toes if they do not see it come out of his hand. Malinga can also swing the ball early on in a match and this is an advantage to him.  Lasith Malinga  is well known for his ability to take consecutive wickets: he is the first and only bowler in the world to have two World Cup hat-tricks, the first and only bowler to have taken three hat-tricks in ODIs and he is also the first, and currently 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.

Early Days

Malinga grew up in modest circumstances in Rathgama, and always enjoyed cricket.  Lasith Malinga  often played out with friends on the sand banks and coconut groves by a river in his cricket-obsessed village.  Lasith Malinga  first had his education at Devapathiraja College, Rathgama and then at Vidyaloka College, Galle. Later he moved to Mahinda College, Galle. Here he was discovered by former Sri Lankan paceman Champaka Ramanayake,who was so impressed by Malinga's raw ability that he invited him to join the Cricket Foundation of Sri Lanka. A short-lived attempt to make Malinga's action more upright led to much reduced pace and failing accuracy. Malinga promptly returned to his natural action with success, and with great encouragement from Champaka Ramanayake.

Style 

Malinga bowling against Pakistan in the final of the 2009 ICC World Twenty20 at Lord's.The cricket reference text Wisden has noted that Malinga's delivery action is similar to "slinging". Malinga has said that his unique action was a result of learning to play cricket exclusively with a tennis ball. Typically, younger bowlers are encouraged to deliver the ball with their arm near vertical to remove or reduce direction variables.

Malinga's action has attracted great comment, but has never been formally questioned; he has not been reported or called for throwing.

International Career

Test Cricket 

A graph showing Malinga's test career bowling statistics and how they have varied over time.  Lasith Malinga  made his Test debut on the July 1–3, 2004, at Darwin's Marrara Oval.  Lasith Malinga  was immediately successful, taking 6 wickets in the match (Darren Lehmann twice, Adam Gilchrist, Damien Martyn, Shane Warne and Michael Kasprowicz)  Lasith Malinga  was impressed by the friendliness of the Australian team in general, and in particular Adam Gilchrist who sought him out after the game to present him with one of the match stumps in the Sri Lankan dressing room.

Lasith Malinga has developed into Sri Lanka's fastest Test bowler and a regular member of both their Test and One Day International sides.  Lasith Malinga  has earned a reputation for troubling batsmen with his lively pace and well-directed bouncer.  Lasith Malinga  regularly bowls at speeds between 140 and 150 km/h (87 to 93 mph) and sometimes slightly faster. As time went by he started to lose pace clocking around 130 to 140 km/h.  Lasith Malinga  slower off cutter was also menacing.  Lasith Malinga  burst onto the test scene after ripping through the New Zealand top order, helping Sri Lanka draw the test series on their 2006/07 tour of New Zealand.  Lasith Malinga  announced his retirement from Test cricket on 22 April 2011 in order to prolong his career in One-Day and T20 cricket.

One Day Internationals 

(ODI) Malinga debuted on July 17, 2004 when Sri Lanka played the United Arab Emirates at Dambulla. Since then he has become a regular member on the ODI squad.

During the Sri Lankan team's tour of New Zealand in 2004–2005, the New Zealand team found his action hard to play and the NZ captain, Stephen Fleming asked the umpire to change his belt and tie to a lighter colour so that they would be better able to see the ball being released from Malinga's hand. The umpire did not do so.

Malinga became a highlight during the 2007 Cricket World Cup, when on March 28, 2007, against South Africa he became the first ever player to take four wickets in four consecutive balls in international cricket. This was also only the fifth hat-trick in World Cup history, the third ODI hat-trick for Sri Lanka and the 24th in all ODI history. Malinga's victims were Shaun Pollock (bowled at 13), Andrew Hall (caught by Upul Tharanga at 0), Jacques Kallis (caught by Kumar Sangakkara at 86), and Makhaya Ntini (bowled at 0). Despite Malinga's lethal spell, however, South Africa proceeded to win the match by 1 wicket with 10 balls still left.

During the 2011 Cricket World Cup, Malinga took his second career hat-trick in Sri Lanka's group stage match against Kenya. This made him the first bowler to take two World Cup hat-tricks, and the fourth to take two hat-tricks in all One Day International cricket (alongside Wasim Akram, Saqlain Mushtaq and Chaminda Vaas). In August 2011, he managed yet an other hat-trick against Australia.

T20 International 

(T20) Malinga plays for Indian Premier League (IPL) team Mumbai Indians.  Lasith Malinga  is their strike bowler in this format and is leading bowler. World record holder Sachin Tendulkar the Mumbai Indian's captain described Malinga as an important cog in Mumbai Indians game plan after the retirement of strike bowler in former South African Captain Shaun Pollock who represented the team in the first season. In the first match for the Mumbai Indians in the fourth season, he got 5 wickets against Delhi Daredevils restricting them to a mere 95.  Lasith Malinga  had his best score of 5/13 in the game.

Lasith Malinga won the Purple Cap award (most wickets) in the fourth season of Indian Premier League with 28 scalps in 16 matches. Throughout the tournament, he led the Mumbai Indians attack from the front and was instrumental in many victories.

In the 2011 Champions League Twenty20, he was the highest wicket taker in the tournament and won the golden wicket for this performance and won the award for the player of the tournament. Malinga also hit a lot of runs. 

Records Only bowler in cricketing history to take four wickets in four consecutive balls in international cricket (vs. South Africa March 2007)

Only bowler in cricketing history to take three hat-tricks in international cricket.

Lasith Malinga and Angelo Mathews hold the highest run partnership for the 9th wicket in an ODI: 132 runs, against Australia in Melbourne in 2010. Malinga scored 56 Runs from 48 balls including six fours and two sixes; Mathews scored 77 runs off 84 deliveries including eight fours and one six.

Lasith Malinga is the only bowler with two World Cup hat tricks, against South Africa in the 2007 Cricket World Cup and the other against Kenya in the 2011 Cricket World Cup.

Malinga also holds the record for most wickets taken in a single IPL season, 28 in the 2011 Indian Premier League 4

Malinga became the first player to take 3 ODI hat-tricks in August 2011.