Pakistan v Sri Lanka - I am missing Lasith Malinga in Test cricket

The Abu Dhabi track was placid and in the age of Twenty20 you don’t expect a team to bat defensively like the 70s and 80s when the tracks were favourable for the bowlers and batting was highly challenging. Both Pakistan and Sri Lanka have some very good stroke makers in the team and on such a benign track, I was expecting those batsmen to cash in big time.

But surprisingly, Sri Lanka’s batting was quite defensive and later, Pakistan also batted like the visitors. The good thing about Pakistan batting was that they didn’t panic like the Lankans and essayed an un-Pakistani style of batting display – less exciting to trigger somnolence.

When the Sri Lankan Lankan batsmen adopted a drop-the-anchor-down ploy, Pakistani paces – Aizaz Cheema and Nunaid Khan had dished high profile bowling to dent the Lankan’s resistance. In contrast, the Lankan bowling seemed toothless to challenge the Pakistani batters and without a doubt they were missing Lasith Malinga.

Such dead tracks are helpful for the exponents of reverse swing and yorkers and in modern day cricket who can utilize them better than Malinga!  

Malinga would have been able to test the Pakistani batting line-up and gift us some exciting moments. But sadly the slinger is not playing in Abu Dhabi. The cricketing world will not watch him in white kits anymore. 

Malinga had picked up a knee injury in 2007 during the tour to Australia. That injury threatened to cut short his cricketing career and to prolong his career, Maling only concentrated in playing the limited-overs cricket till 2010. He did feature in Test cricket against India last year, but after playing the first two Test matches, his knee problems showed up again and thus, he didn’t appear in the final Test match. In April 2011, he decided to quit Test cricket. His knee problems will not allow him to play Test cricket anymore.  

This has been a great loss for Test cricket. Charismatic bowlers like Malinga always make Test cricket more exciting and in an ear when such charismatic bowlers are lacking in Test cricket, the absence of Malinga simply kills the joy.

Personally, I am missing Lasith Malinga a lot in Test cricket.

Thank You

Faisal Caesar