BANGALORE: The Rajasthan Royals announced Friday that Sri Lankan fast bowler Lasith Malinga will return to the Indian Premier League (IPL) as a fast-bowling coach.

With 170 wickets for five-time champions Mumbai Indians, with whom he won four titles, Malinga remains the greatest wicket-taker in the world’s most valuable cricket league.

The Royals, who won the first IPL in 2008 with late Australian great Shane Warne, tweeted Malinga’s photo as fast bowling coach with the message “kisses the ball,” a reference to his habit of kissing the ball before each stint.

In 2021, he retired from the franchise and international Twenty20s, and this year, he led the Sri Lankan team on a five-match T20 tour of Australia.

Lasith Malinga, who was known for his unique sling-arm movement, finished his illustrious career with 107 T20 wickets for Sri Lanka and had previously guided the nation to a World Cup victory in 2014.

Kumar Sangakkara, a former Sri Lankan captain, is the Royals’ director of cricket. The Royals finished seventh in the eight-team table last year.

The prestigious tournament’s 15th edition has been expanded to ten teams and will begin on March 26 in Mumbai and Pune.

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