Last Updated on 5 years by Charbel Coorey

Lasith Malinga, one of the all-time great T20 bowlers, will miss the early parts of IPL 2020.

Malinga will not travel to the UAE with the Mumbai Indians squad. According to ESPNCricinfo, Malinga’s father has been ill, and could require surgery in the coming weeks. The Sri Lankan fast bowling great wishes to be with his father during this period.

Another factor that could have influenced Malinga’s decision is the 14-day quarantine protocols for anyone entering Sri Lanka. So, if Malinga had flown to the UAE and then decided he wanted to travel back to Sri Lanka to be with his father, he would have not been able to be by his side due to the quarantine requirements.

Malinga will be staying in Colombo, where he will also be training to ensure he remains as fit as possible. The consensus is that he will be available for Mumbai Indians in the backend of the tournament, including the playoffs, should they qualify. His experience will be invaluable, which was most on show in a terrific final over in a classic IPL 2019 Final, where he defended eight off the final over.

Despite the loss of Malinga for the initial stages of the tournament, Mumbai Indians have an embarrassment of riches when it comes to their pace department. They can turn to a number of other capable pace bowling options, namely Jasprit Bumrah, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Trent Boult, Mitchell McClenaghan, Dhawal Kulkarni, and allrounders Hardik Pandya and Kieron Pollard. It is Mumbai Indians’ depth that separates them from other IPL teams.

The IPL is yet to release the official fixtures for the tournament, which is pencilled in to begin on September 19. However, it is believed that the Mumbai Indians will face rivals Chennai Super Kings in their first match.