IPL 2020: What makes Sri Lankan maverick Lasith Malinga a death overs specialist?

Sri Lanka legend Lasith Malinga turned 37 on Friday, with wishes pouring in for the iconic cricketer from all parts of the world. While making their Malinga birthday wishes, fans and members of the cricket fraternity referred to the fast bowler’s death-bowling skills and toe-crunching yorkers. Malinga is widely regarded as one of the world’s best bowlers during the death overs has an enviable record to back the claim as well. According to ESPN Cricinfo, the 90 wickets taken by Malinga at the death is the most by any bowler in IPL history. Known for his unique slinging action which has continued to deceive batsmen even now, there are several factors which make the 37-year-old a fearsome force when bowling at the death.

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Variations help Lasith Malinga act as a death over specialist

Arguably the greatest reason why Lasith Malinga is regarded as a death over specialist is the Sri Lankan pacer's variety of deliveries which continues to outfox batsmen to this day. Even Lasith Malinga’s famed yorkers have a variety to them. After developing the art of bowling yorkers by placing a pair of shoes in the nets to increase his accuracy, Malinga came up with the slower yorker as his career progressed.

In several instances, batsmen were caught out with the lack of pace on his delivery, with shots completed even before the ball reached them. In addition to his disguised change of pace, Lasith Malinga also bowls a mean bouncer. This unpredictability in the array of variation in his arsenal is what makes Malinga the pillar of death bowling. Jasprit Bumrah, who has taken tips on death bowling from Malinga himself, called the Sri Lankan the best bowler of yorkers. 

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Bowler’s experience has made the Malinga last over a dreaded one

Throughout his career, Malinga has been given the responsibility of bowling the final over. Whether it is for the Sri Lankan team in limited-overs cricket or his IPL team, Mumbai Indians, he is the go-to bowler whenever a tight last over is of the essence. It is said that practice makes one perfect, and the repeated experience of bowling the last over and soaking the pressure is also one of the reasons why Lasith Malinga has developed into a wily old fox when it comes to bowling in the death overs. Having navigated through a host of different scenarios, Lasith Malinga can read the game well and hold his nerve, which helps him master the art of death bowling. 

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The experience Lasith Malinga has to offer during the later stages of the game was on full display during IPL 2019 when his impressive last over helped Mumbai Indians win the match by a solitary run. When the Chennai Super Kings needed two runs off the final ball, Lasith Malinga took the decision to bowl a slower delivery, which eventually dismissed Shardul Thakur to hand his side the victory. After the match, Lasith Malinga admitted that the decision to cut down on pace was a conscious one. Before the final ball, Lasith Malinga had planned with Rohit Sharma to take the pace off the ball in order to send the batsman packing. That kind of on-the-spot thinking and match awareness only comes when you’ve bowled countless overs at the death, which Lasith Malinga has done over and over.

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Unique action and impressive accuracy

Another reason why Lasith Malinga is so effective in the death overs is because of his slinging action, which makes it difficult for the batsman to pick his deliveries. After the 2014 World Cup final loss to Sri Lanka, MS Dhoni had talked about what makes Lasith Malinga’s bowling so lethal. Dhoni praised Lasith Malinga for consistently bowling wide yorkers, admitting that his slinging, side-arm action is difficult for batsmen to read. The Sri Lankan maverick has an unusual point of delivery, just by the umpire’s frame, which has troubled batsmen for years. His consistent accuracy is one more reason behind his proficiency at the death. The fact that he can consistently execute those yorkers time and again is a skill few bowlers can boast of.

All these facets make Lasith Malinga a death over specialist. During the 2019 World Cup campaign, Malinga was amongst the top 10 most economical bowlers at the death. Out of his 338 ODI wickets, Lasith Malinga has bagged over a third of them in the final overs. Lasith Malinga may be ageing, but he is still certainly one of the top picks when it comes to bowling the death overs.

Image Courtesy: PTI