Sri Lanka paceman Lasith Malinga has announced his retirement from Test cricket due to a degenerative knee injury.
Knee injury prompts fast bowler to concentrate on white-ball formats
Sri Lanka paceman Lasith Malinga has announced his retirement from Test cricket.
Malinga, 27, released a statement revealing a "degenerative condition" in his right knee had forced him to end his five-day career.
He will remain available for Sri Lanka's one-day and Twenty20 international teams as he aims to prolong his career to play in the 2015 World Cup in Australia.
Malinga, who is famous for his low-slung action and inswinging yorkers, claimed 101 wickets at an average of 33.15 in 30 Tests following his debut against Australia in Darwin in July 2004.
"In January this year I wrote a letter to Sri Lanka Cricket and released a statement to the media confirming that I planned to reassess my Test future after the World Cup," he said in a statement.
"I decided that I needed to make myself unavailable for Test cricket in an effort to prolong my career as a national cricketer for Sri Lanka.
"Although I am sufficiently fit to play both ODI and T20 cricket, I have a long standing degenerative condition in my right knee that needs to be carefully managed."
Severe pain
Malinga took a three-year break from Test cricket before returning for the home series against India last year.
He added: "I did try to return to Test cricket after a three-year absence last year following requests from the team management and the selectors, but it left me unfit nursing severe knee pain for two months.
"I have realised that the heavy workload of Test cricket, which requires a fast bowler to be able to bowl more than 15 overs, sometimes on consecutive days, could lead to permanent injury.
"I have carefully considered my options and have decided that not playing Test cricket will help me achieve my goal of representing Sri Lanka in the 2012 World Twenty20 and the 2015 World Cup."
Malinga has recently been involved in a dispute with the Sri Lanka Cricket Board after ruling himself out of the upcoming Tests in England.
Despite the injury, he continued to play in the Indian Premier League - a lucrative Twenty20 competition - leading the SLC to ask him to return home immediately to start a rehabilitation programme.
