Lasith Malinga played a crucial role in Sri Lanka’s scrappy win over Afghanistan in the seventh match of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 at Sophia Gardens in Cardiff on Tuesday. The Sri Lankan side defended a revised 187-run target in the given 41 overs.
The 35-year-old Malinga, rose to the occasion by picking up three wickets for 39, including the match-winning wicket of Hamid Hassan with a toe-crushing yorker. Fellow pacer Nuwan Pradeep claimed four wickets for 34 as Sri Lanka averted what could have been an another upset in the ongoing World Cup.
The relief exhibited by Malinga in their moment of triumph was understandable. After 21 consecutive defeats, this was the first ODI Malinga has won in two years: a microcosm of the strife that has engulfed his team. And so, after their 10-wicket dismantling by New Zealand on Saturday, Sri Lanka could leave Cardiff with some rather better memories.
Here’s the video:
Watch Sri Lanka's winning moment – a classic yorker from Lasith Malinga! #AFGvSL #CWC19 pic.twitter.com/YCnC2b1Nty
— ICC (@ICC) June 4, 2019
