Sri Lankan limited overs captain Lasith Malinga made a major announcement on Friday after losing the second T20I to South Africa by 16 runs in Centurion. The 35-year-old has decided to retire from international cricket after next year's Twenty20 World Cup.
Malinga said that he would quit one-day internationals after the World Cup in England and Wales this summer before calling time on his career following the Twenty20 tournament, being played in Australia over October-November 2020.
“After the World Cup, my cricketing career is ending. I want to play in the T20 World Cup and then end my career,” Malinga said.
Malinga dismissed South African top-scorer Reeza Hendricks for 65 on Friday, his 97th T20 international wicket. He is one short of the world record of 98 held by Pakistan's Shahid Afridi.
The veteran pacer is also scheduled to join the Mumbai Indians franchise in this season of the Indian Premier League (IPL). However, he will be missing the first six games for his team as he will participate in Sri Lanka's Super Provincial One-Day domestic tournament, slated from April 4 to April 11 after the conclusion of South African tour.
“I had asked the board for the No-Objection Certificate for me to play in the IPL, and they had said that was fine, but that all players who want to go to the World Cup would need to stay back for the provincial tournament,” Malinga said.
“So I told them I'd play in the provincial tournament, and I asked the board to inform Mumbai Indians and IPL since it was their decision. I'm ok with losing those earnings from IPL. I'm doing it for the country,” he added.