Inaugural edition champions Rajasthan Royals have roped in former Mumbai Indians and Sri Lanka legendary fast bowler Lasith Malinga as the bowling coach ahead of the 2022 Indian Premier League.
The 38-year old is delighted on a return to the IPL in a new role and praised the Royals for developing young talent throughout the last few years.
Malinga said,
“It’s a wonderful feeling for me to return to the IPL and an absolute honour to join Rajasthan Royals, a franchise that has always promoted and developed young talent.”
He continued,
“I am excited by the pace bowling unit we have going into the tournament and looking forward to supporting all the fast bowlers with the execution of their game plans and their overall development. I’ve made some very special memories in the IPL with Mumbai Indians and now with Royals, looking forward to new experiences and creating great memories in this journey.”
After an intense IPL 2022 Mega-Auction, Royals assembled a fiery fast-bowling contingent consisting of Trent Boult, Nathan Coulter-NIle, Prasidh Krishna, Navdeep Saini, and Obed McCoy with Ravichandran Ashwin and Yuzvendra Chahal acting as the spin twins.
Malinga’s experience of bowling in the death will help the star-studded Royals’ fast bowling contingent in the 15th edition of the IPL. The Sri Lankan currently has the most number of wickets in the IPL history with 170 wickets taken across several seasons that ended with the golden-haired boy lifting the trophy.
Royals’ Head Coach and Director of Cricket, Kumar Sangakkara heaped praise on his former teammate Malinga welcoming him into the backroom staff.
He said,
“Lasith is arguably one of the greatest T20 fast bowlers of all time, and to have a personality like his around the training ground, and the expertise he brings to the table, is certainly something we feel the team can benefit from.”
Sangakkara continued,
“We have some of the best fast bowlers in our squad and we are delighted that they will have the chance to work with Lasith and get to learn and develop further..”
Paddy Upton in his previous stint with the Rajasthan Royals
Former head coach Paddy Upton is also returning to the Jaipur-based franchise as the South Africa-born coach has been appointed as the ‘Team Catalyst’ ahead of the fifteenth edition of the cash-rich league.
A club statement welcomed back Upton to the coaching set-up explaining in detail about his new role in the coaching staff.
It said,
“Being the Team Catalyst, Upton will play a crucial role in establishing team integration by bringing them together as a cohesive and mutually supporting unit, and look after their mental well-being with the use of various mental conditioning processes and activities that aid in maintaining a healthy culture and environment, especially within the restrictions of being in a bio-bubble.”
Sangakkara also welcomed back Upton by saying a few words,
“Paddy has been a great servant for the Royals, he has done an exceptional job in building that cohesion between players, and also conditioning them mentally. We believe he will act as a great addition to our coaching staff.”
RR will open their IPL 2022 campaign against Sunrisers Hyderabad on 29th March at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Ground in Pune.