IPL 2022: Rajasthan Royals appoint Lasith Malinga as fast bowling coach ahead of upcoming season
Lasith Malinga makes a return to the Indian Premier League in a new role.
Rajasthan Royals roped in the services of former Sri Lanka speedster Lasith Malinga as the franchise's fast bowling coach ahead of the upcoming season of the Indian Premier League. Malinga, who had been one of the key figures for the Mumbai Indians during his playing career, had retired from the game last year. The stint with the Royals would be Malinga's maiden role as a coach in the tournament.
The Royals confirmed the development on their official Twitter profile.
“*kisses the ball* Lasith Malinga. IPL. Pink,” wrote Royals, sharing a creative graphic denoting Malinga's appointment as the fast-bowling coach.
Malinga is currently the highest wicket-taker in the history of IPL, with 170 wickets to his name in 122 matches. The 38-year-old is one of the very few players who represented only one franchise in the tournament; in Malinga's case, Mumbai. The pacer won five IPL titles with Mumbai Indians and played an instrumental role in each of franchise's title-winning campaigns.
Widely regarded as one of the most destructive fast bowlers during his playing days, Malinga will be working with the likes of Navdeep Saini and Prasidh Krishna among India bowlers, as well as New Zealand's leading pacer Trent Boult and West Indies' Obed McCoy at the Rajasthan Royals.
Rajasthan Royals will begin their campaign in IPL 2022 against Sunrisers Hyderabad on March 29. The side will be led by Sanju Samson, who was one of the three players retained by the side ahead of the mega auction in February (the others being Jos Buttler and Yashasvi Jaiswal).
In the IPL mega auction, RR roped in the likes of Ravichandran Ashwin and Yuzvendra Chahal to bolster their spin-bowling attack, and spent a hefty sum on overseas cricketers like Shimron Hetmyer, Rassie van der Dussen, Jimmy Neesham, and Daryl Mitchell, among others.