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Malinga talks about his new IPL chapter in pink colours.
Malinga has joined the Rajasthan Royals coaching staff for the forthcoming IPL season.
The IPL is all set to see a new Lankan coaching duo in Malinga and Sangakkara. After playing alongside each other with great success in the golden era of SL cricket they have joined hands to take Rajasthan Royals to new heights.
Speaking about his decision to join Rajasthan Royals, Malinga said, “It was actually last year that Kumar (Sangakkara) asked me if I was interested. But with Covid and all the bubble restrictions, I didn’t want to stay away from my family. But this year, having also worked with the Sri Lankan team, I felt I could use my experience and give back to the game that I love, by working with this group of players.”
A lot of eyebrows were raised when Rajasthan Royals announced their alliance with Malinga. Everyone was sure that Malinga would only associate himself with Mumbai Indians after all the years he has been with them. Speaking about his new franchise he said he is delighted to be working with a new bunch of talented bowlers.
He also went on to say that, “The first thing that always stayed with me was the color – pink. I always saw the team have good international and local players, and whenever I used to face them, it was tough. I think they were always very competitive, and could beat any team on their day,”
Malinga has gone from one Lankan teammate to another after coaching MI for a brief while with Mahela Jayawardene and now working with Kumar Sangakkara, but the commonality between both the franchises do not just stop there.
Another common factor both the teams have is the trio of Trent Boult, Nathan Coulter-Nile and Jimmy Neesham who played together for Mumbai Indians and now are set to play a vital role in RR too. Hence, there is more familiarity for Malinga in Rajasthan Royals camp than everyone expected when the announcement was made.
Speaking about the RR pace attack Malinga said, “I think we have a fantastic pace attack. You’ve got experienced overseas players like Boult and Coulter-Nile, with whom I’ve worked before. Then we’ve got genuine Indian fast bowlers in Prasidh and Saini, who have proven themselves at the highest level, and some new faces in Anunay Singh, Kuldeep Sen and Kuldip Yadav. In T20 cricket, I think little margins really matter, and I’m here to guide them to deliver their best in all situations,”
The Lankan connection does not end yet as Rajasthan Royals is set to take on another franchise with a Lankan as its bowling coach, Muttiah Muralidharan. They face Sunrisers Hyderabad in their first match of the tournament.
Lastly, Malinga gave some valuable advice to fast bowlers: “I think most of the times teams focus on analyzing the opposition and looking at their weaknesses. But in my experience, I think what works best is when you work on your strengths and bowl according to them. In T20, you only have to bowl 24 balls, which works in our favour but it’s also important to trust your instincts as to which variations can work in which situations.”
Rajasthan Royals take on SRH in their first match of the Tata IPL 2022 season.
