WILL ANNOUNCE RETIREMENT SOON: MALINGA

ST MORITZ (SWITZERLAND):

Sri Lanka speedster Lasith Malinga has hinted at possible retirement, saying that he is mentally done with international cricket now that his eventful IPL career is over. Malinga was on Wednesday appointed bowling mentor of Mumbai Indians. The Sri Lankan has been the core of Mumbai Indians winning combination in the last decade. He has donned the prestigious Mumbai Indians jersey in 110 matches of the 157 games the franchise has played so far. “Mentally I am over with playing cricket. I don’t think I will play anymore international cricket. I am planning to announce my retirement soon,” Malinga told PTI during an exclusive interaction on the sidelines of the St Moritz Ice Cricket Challenge here. “I have not spoken to Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) but once I go back I will have to again go through domestic grind, see how my body responds. But now as my IPL career is also over and I am starting a new chapter with Mumbai Indians, I might not play again,” he added. Malinga knows it will be very difficult not to play for Mumbai Indians but admitted that in his heart he knew that his time was up. “Everyone gets that signal. Even the great Wasim Akram knew when his time was up,” he said. “I was not surprised at their decision not to have retained me. I had 10 very good years with Mumbai Indians and I achieved a lot. But this year, the owners spoke to me and told me about their vision going forward. They wanted to create a good team for the next three years. I also understand that my time in competitive cricket is over now.”