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England should fear ‘Slinga’ Malinga

Lasith ‘Slinga’ Malinga showed just what his Test side are missing at the Oval with another impressive show of genuine pace bowling. Malinga took another three wickets, including the early scalp of Captain Cook for only five runs. Staurt Broad’s wicket was Malinga’s fifth in two outings, including the opening T20 at Bristol.

England batted well at the Oval and it was good to see the majority of the batting line-up contribute to their 229 total. There’ll be concern though that Malinga enjoys bowling in England and his figures back that up. Currently his bowling average stands at a worrying 16.75 and he has taken 16 wickets from his six matches on English soil.

Cricket fans might remember the fifth ODI in the Natwest series in 2006. That afternoon Malinga took four wickets for just 44 runs, including dismissing Strauss and Bresnan. He also averages 15.15 with the bat, which isn’t  too bad for an opening bowler and his player performance spread will certainly be a hot market for the Headingley ODI.