Colombo: Lasith Malinga retired from one-day internationals after Sri Lanka registered 91-run win over Bangladesh in Colombo. Malinga returned with impressive figures of 3/38 in his final ODI to help Sri Lanka beat Bangladesh.
The 35-year-old, known for his blond-tinted hair and the distinctive skingshot action , received a guard of honor from his team mates at the start of the second innings at R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo.
Malinga did not disappoint his fans as he produced an inswinging yorker to remove Bangladesh opener Tamim Iqbal with just his fifth ball of innings.
Malinga finished as the 3rd highest wicket-taker in ODI cricket for Sri Lanka with 338 wickets in 220 innings with only Muttiah Muralitharan (523) and Chaminda Vaas (399) above him on the list.
Between 2006 and 2013, no other bowler took more wickets than Malinga’s 267, this despite him missing 15 months of action in 2008-09 owing to knee troubles.
“I feel it’s the right time for me to retire from ODIs. I have been playing for the last 15 years for Sri Lanka and this is the right time to move on. My time is over and I have to go. Winning is very important for me; We are a young team,” Malinga said in the post-match presentation.
He has also taken three ODI hat-tricks and is the only player to have achieved the milestone twice during a World Cup.
