Paltan, let’s come together to reminisce our legend, Lasith Malinga as we go through his illustrious career. The Yorker King amassed 546 wickets across formats in international cricket with 101 coming in Tests, 338 in ODIs, and 107 in T20Is. Moreover, he’s taken 170 crucial scalps in the Blue & Gold, leading the charge for almost all our seasons since making his debut for us in 2009. Let’s take a look back at his journey with us. 

Mali made his debut for us on the 18th of April, 2009 against arch-rivals Chennai Super Kings in Newlands, Cape Town. He picked up the important wickets of Parthiv Patel, S. Badrinath, and M.S. Dhoni in an emphatic victory for us. A few games later, he produced a terrific 3/11 against the Kolkata Knight Riders.  Those performances really set the tone for the rest of his career with us. He finished that season with 18 wickets in 13 games. 

After an underwhelming 2010 season, he came back all guns blazing in 2011 with 28 wickets to clinch the Purple Cap Award. 

He remained consistent throughout his journey with us, playing a key role in our title-winning seasons averaging at almost 19 wickets a season overall. 

There are several memorable moments Mali has given us. To begin with, let’s talk about his 5/13 against the erstwhile Delhi Daredevils in 2011. DD won the toss and elected to bat first. Little did they know what was in store for them. Lasith was at his blistering best, getting the massive wickets of David Warner and Unmukt Chand within his first 4 balls. He added 3 more to his tally over the course of the game restricting DD to a tame 95 in the process. 

His 4/16 against the Deccan Chargers in 2012 is another spell that will be etched in our memories forever. He started with the wicket of Cameron White and went on a rampage, bundling our opponents out for just 100.

In 2017, he bowled a flawless 2 overs against the Delhi Daredevils ending with figures of 2/5 with the wickets of Shreyas Iyer and Corey Anderson. 

There are countless such performances Lasith has put in for us over the years. He is well and truly a Mumbai Indians legend and will be part of our One Family Forever. All the best in your future endeavours, Mali!