Mahela Jayawardene is all set to feature in the Natwest T20 Blast 2017

Former Sri Lankan captain and coach of IPL table-toppers Mumbai Indians, Mahela Jayawardene has been roped in by the Natwest T20 Blast side Lancashire Lightning for England’s domestic T20 competition Natwest T20 Blast. He has been named as a non-overseas player, because of his wife Christina, who is Danish.

Mahela maybe a coach in the IPL, but that does not signify that he is too old to play professional cricket now. He was a part of the Karachi Kings roster in the Pakistan Super League (PSL) but had played only a single game there. He has played in T20 Blast previously for Sussex and Somerset.

The Sri Lankan legend played 149 Test matches and has scored 12,000 runs in his career, maintaining a healthy average of just under 50. The owner of over 25,000 international runs will be a great addition to the Lightning squad, who failed to qualify for the knockout stages in the last edition of the Natwest T20 Blast.

He will join the squad in the first week of July and is likely to debut against Leicestershire Foxes at Old Trafford on July 9. The winner of many battles and owner of many trophies was heard saying, “I’m very excited about joining Lancashire Lightning for the NatWest T20 Blast this summer. Lancashire is a huge county with a fine history in the game. There is a young group of players at the club and I’m really looking forward to the opportunity to working with them and to be part of the T20 campaign this summer. I haven’t won the NatWest T20 Blast in my career and it’s a trophy I’d love to experience success in this summer with Lancashire Lightning.”

Former Indian national team coach, Greg Chappell, is the coach of Lancashire Lightning. Regarding his new recruit, he said, “Mahela is a truly world class batsman who scores runs all around the wicket. He’s a true competitor and a winner too, and I’m thrilled to be able to bring him into our squad for the NatWest T20 Blast later this summer. He is a legend of the game and is one of the greatest batsman to have played cricket in the modern era. It will be a fantastic opportunity for our young players to learn off him and for our fans to watch one of the game’s greats”.

The tournament kick-starts on July 7th and fans all over the world would be thrilled to see the legend of Sri Lanka holding the bat in his hands again.