The blonde-tipped curls are missing but the toe-crushing yorkers and the sling action bear a striking resemblance to Lasith Malinga, the former Sri Lankan pacer.
Matheesha Pathirana took the IPL by storm in his second season with his accuracy and strike-rate in Chennai Super Kings’ title victory in 2023 — 19 wickets in 12 matches at
an economy of 8. It was enough to enjoy the trust and confidence of Mahendra Singh Dhoni as a Powerplay and death over specialist.
A viral bowling video of Pathirana had reached Dhoni during Covid in 2021 and the then CSK captain was quick to reach out to the young Sri Lankan and make him play for the franchise the next season.
Injuries and national commitments reduced his participation to only six matches this season in the IPL but Pathirana will be Sri Lanka’s go-to man when the T20I series begins against India in Pallekele on Saturday.
Sony Sports Network is the official broadcaster for the limited overs series.
“I’ve played at CSK for three years and Mahi bhai recognised me as a death bowler. He gave me the opportunity after watching me at nets. On my debut match, I took a wicket of the first ball.
“But the second year was the best and we were the champions. I was there for three months at a stretch and the bonding grew. It’s like a family for me now. Mahi bhai is always there to provide you confidence and you learn a lot from him,” Pathirana told The Telegraph on Tuesday evening.
“Not just Mahi bhai, Dwayne Bravo (bowling coach) has also been very helpful. Playing for three years with CSK has been the best gift for me... Hope to stay with them for my whole career.”
But how did he master the art of death bowling so early in his career? “I never take much pressure even if someone hits me for boundaries. I always wait for my chance. Just do normal things, maybe take a deep breath and come back stronger,” Pathirana explained his philosophy.
“Yorkers are my strength. It’s still not perfect and I’m always working on improving it and landing on the right spot consistently. I always practise yorkers and will have to keep doing so to achieve more accuracy.”
Pathirana, 21, grew up emulating Malinga and getting to work with his legend helped him evolve. Known at home as “Podi (little) Malinga” or “Mini Mali” (Malinga’s nickname), CSK fans now affectionately call Pathirana “Baby Malinga”.
“What I am today is all because of Malinga. I’m not at all exaggerating... Everyone knows what he did during his playing days. That’s why I am getting a lot of credit for my action. All the credit for my success goes to him. That’s all and I don’t need to explain much,” he said.
“Once he came to know that I was from Trinity College and Kandy, he started watching me and provided me with all inputs. I always wanted to bowl like him and learning from him was like a dream.
“Whenever we meet, he has a little chat about how I need to improve and what I need to concentrate on... we don’t meet often but he always stays in touch and sends voice messages to motivate us.”
Pathirana doesn’t wish to rate Sri Lanka’s chances in the upcoming series. “It’s difficult to rate our chances since it all matters how we perform on that given day. If we perform well then good, otherwise...”
