Lasith Malinga ruled out of World T20 due to knee injury
Sri Lanka fast bowler Lasith Malinga has been ruled out of the ICC World Twenty20 due to a knee injury, the defending champions said on Friday. “Malinga’s knee injury flared up before the match against Afghanistan yesterday,” a team spokesperson said. On Thursday Sri Lanka beat Afghanistan by 6-wickets to get their campaign underway on the right note but it came with Malinga sitting on the sidelines.
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This is the same knee – the left – that has been plaguing his progress since November and forced him to stay out of cricket. A replacement for the pacer is expected to be named soon by the Sri Lankan selectors.
“He has been ruled out of the World Cup and has flown back to Sri Lanka this afternoon,” added the spokesperson.
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Before the match on Thursday, he was seen wearing a knee brace and bowled in the practice nets throughout the week as well. But during the warm-ups, he is believed to have aggravated the injury to do enough damage that would put a severe dent on Sri Lanka’s already slim chances at the extravaganza.
Even during the Asia Cup he played just one match. Later in the run up to World T20, he relinquished the captaincy role knowing full well he can’t confirm his availability for the tournament. In his place, Angelo Mathews took up the captain’s armband.
