Malinga To Rethink On Retirement From T20Is

Earlier in March, Malinga had stated that he wanted to retire after the Twenty20 World Cup scheduled in Australia in 2020

Sri Lanka captain and veteran pacer Lasith Malinga may have had retired from the 50-over format but he feels that he can continue in the shortest format for two more years. Earlier in March, he had stated that he wanted to retire after the Twenty20 World Cup scheduled in October-November in Australia next year. But the 36-year-old, who captains Sri Lanka in the shortest format, now says he can play on beyond that. “T20 is four overs and I feel with my skill, I can manage T20 as a bowler. As a captain, because I’ve played so many T20s around the world that I feel I can manage that period for maybe another two years,” Malinga told ‘ESPNCricinfo’. Malinga said he is waiting to hear from Sri Lanka Cricket on whether he would be leading the side in the Twenty20 showpiece. “(Sri Lanka Cricket) said for the World Cup I have to be lead there but you never know in Sri Lanka,” he said. The only bowler with 100 T20 International wickets said Sri Lanka need continuity in leadership for a lasting change of fortunes after a period of a slump. “Sri Lanka are lacking that skilful bowler, they lack those consistencies. We can’t get one year, one and a half years, all fixed, it might be that we need to get patience, maybe two or three years. Consistency is very important. I feel whoever is doing the next selection have to understand that (for) people (to learn), they have to be there. If he’s on the bench, nobody can learn,” he said. Malinga said the only way he can contribute to the game in the country is by continuing to play. “If I believe I can give something to the youngsters, then I need to be there. I can tell, but now I can show them ‘this is the way how you do it.’ But if I don’t play then I can’t do that,” he said.