Lasith Malinga has been ruled out of IPL 2020 due to personal reasons. Mumbai Indians have replaced the veteran pacer with Australian James Pattinson. IPL 2020 is set to take place in UAE from September onwards with stadiums in UAE, Abu Dhabi and Dubai hosting all the games behind closed doors. The competition was initially scheduled to take place in March but was postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic. Jasprit Bumrah Praises Lasith Malinga, Says ‘He Is the Best Yorker Bowler in the World’.

Mumbai Indians announced on Wednesday that Lasith Malinga will not play for the franchise in the upcoming edition of the Indian Premier League as the Sri Lanka cricketer has requested unavailability for the season due to personal reasons. The veteran will be replaced by Australian speedster James Pattinson.

‘Mumbai Indians replace Lasith Malinga with Australian pacer James Pattinson’ the franchise said in an official statement. ‘Mumbai Indians have signed Australian speedster James Pattinson as a replacement for Lasith Malinga for the Dream11 IPL 2020 season. James Pattinson will join the MI Family currently based in Abu Dhabi this weekend.’ They added.

It was earlier reported that Lasith Malinga was supposed to miss the initial part of the season as he wanted to be by his father’s side who has been ill and might need surgery in the coming weeks. But the Sri Lankan has now pulled out of the tournament completely.

‘Lasith is a legend and a pillar of MI’s strength. There is no denying the fact that we will miss Lasith’s cricketing acumen this season. However, we fully understand Lasith’s need to be in Sri Lanka with his family during this time.’ The four-time IPL champions said in a statement.

Lasith Malinga has been a part of Mumbai Indians squad since the tournament's inception in 2018 and despite taking the role of the franchises bowing mentor during the 2018 edition, he was re-bought by Mumbai for the 2019 edition, which they won. The Sri Lanka pacer is the highest wicket-taker in the tournament.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 02, 2020 07:02 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).