Mumbai Indians have named Sri Lanka veteran Lasith Malinga as the bowling coach of their Major League Cricket (MLC) side MI New York, the franchise revealed in an official announcement.
“Lasith Malinga. Bowling Coach. #MINewYork. Welcome back into the #OneFamily, Mali! #MajorLeagueCricket @malinga_ninety9,” MI New York captioned their social media post.
𝐋𝐚𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐌𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐚. 𝐁𝐨𝐰𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐂𝐨𝐚𝐜𝐡. #MINewYork.
Welcome back into the #OneFamily, Mali! 🥹💙#MajorLeagueCricket | @malinga_ninety9 pic.twitter.com/djkx9LNuPW
— MI New York (@MINYCricket) June 14, 2023
Meanwhile, former South Africa all-rounder Robin Peterson has been appointed as the head coach of the MI New York team. J Arun Kumar and James Pamment will join as the batting and fielding coaches, respectively.
Both Arun Kumar and Pamment were part of the Mumbai Indians coaching team as assistant batting coach and fielding coach at the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023.
In addition to the coaching staff, MI New York have also unveiled their star-studded line-up of players for the inaugural MLC season.
MI legend Kieron Pollard will captain the franchise and the team also includes Afghanistan’s spin wizard Rashid Khan, former West Indies captain Nicholas Pooran, New Zealand pacer Trent Boult, South Africa fast bowler Kagiso Rabada among others.
MI New York will start their MLC campaign against San Francisco Unicorns on July 14.
Akash Ambani, the owner of Mumbai Indians, believes that MI New York possesses a well-balanced blend of experience, youthful talent, and strength, which will contribute to their success in the inaugural season of Major League Cricket.
“We are thrilled to unveil team MI New York in the upcoming Major League Cricket season. Stalwart Pollard is leading the team which has international superstars Rashid Khan, Nicholas Pooran, Trent Boult and Kagiso Rabada. It is an extraordinary line-up of youth, experience, and power,” he said in his official statement.
