In the never-ending quest to understand reverse swing—or, if you prefer the stricter label, old-ball swing—one name has been popping up with increasing frequency. It’s Eshan Malinga, and while the surname will immediately remind many fans of Lasith Malinga, this Eshan has quietly built a reputation that stands apart on his own merits since retiring the earlier chapter of that story.
Malinga may not carry the flashiest traits: he doesn’t bowl with a signature high pace, and his action won’t be described as unusual. What he does offer is control and timing. In a match last year, he managed to get the ball moving in reverse as early as the 12th over, and not with a one-off spell—his swing was reliable, producing a tail of more than two degrees.
There’s also a technical nuance to his work. His swing doesn’t fit neatly into the broad “old-ball” category that many fans think of first. When a bowler keeps the release steady, with an upright seam, and the ball moves towards the comparatively shinier side, that movement is more accurately called contrast swing. In modern cricket commentary, however, this is often grouped alongside reverse swing for simplicity.
Some fast bowlers still operate in the mould of Waqar Younis, keeping the seam angled towards fine leg. Mohammad Wasim did something similar against Bangladesh during the 2023 ODI World Cup match in Kolkata.
Malinga executes the same basic idea regularly. As soon as the ball is properly set, he drops his arm slightly, tilts the seam towards fine leg, and gets more movement than other upright-seam practitioners who rely on the same contrast mechanism. That is why his spells tend to arrive with impact in the latter portion of an innings: for Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL, 60% of his deliveries have come in the second half.
Hyderabad’s conditions and the turning point vs CSK
Sunrisers have clear reasons to value what Malinga brings. Hyderabad’s outfield is among the most unforgiving surfaces in the league—hard and bare. The pitch itself is similarly stripped down. Bowlers are forced to scuff the surface quickly by repeatedly driving the ball into it, so they can get the less damaged side primed with saliva and make it swing.
- In Sunrisers Hyderabad’s IPL 2026 match on Saturday, they defended 194 against Chennai Super Kings.
- From the start, the pace bowlers began with short balls even when the new ball was in use.
- Praful Hinge was struck for a six off the first delivery.
- Nitish Kumar Reddy got Sanju Samson out by taking a catch on the pull.
- Sakib Hussain sent the ball for five wides down the leg side.
- Malinga then bowled a sharp, physical delivery that tore the glove of Ruturaj Gaikwad as it went to the wicketkeeper.
- Fielders continued to keep the pressure on by returning throws that bounced around the square, as far as they could without inviting umpire attention.
- By the time Malinga returned for his second over, in the 11th over of the innings, the ball had become properly “ready”.
- CSK required 84 runs from the final ten overs with seven wickets in hand, but Malinga shifted the contest with the wicket of Sarfaraz Khan in that over.
- He struck again in the 15th over, dismissing Matthew Short with another delivery that swung.
- Early in the 15th over, Malinga also went for four by coaxing a thick outside edge off Shivam Dube—again driven by old-ball swing.
- Across his three overs with the old ball, Malinga conceded 19 runs and claimed two wickets for Sunrisers.
- To avoid predictability, he mixed in the occasional short ball and a slower one.
- CSK ultimately finished ten runs short of the target.
The numbers since the start of IPL 2025 underline how much of a specialist he has become. Among 26 fast bowlers who have delivered at least 100 balls in the back half of innings, only Prasidh Krishna has a superior average to Malinga’s 14.05. On economy, only Jasprit Bumrah, Prasidh Krishna, Marco Jansen and Pat Cummins have been more frugal than his 9.14.
It helps that the list of bowlers ahead of him isn’t random. Bumrah is widely viewed as the best white-ball bowler of the modern era. Krishna offers the height advantage, Jansen adds even more elevation, and Pat Cummins brings a resume shaped by Test and ODI excellence.
When the scope widens to fast bowlers who have sent down at least 200 deliveries in the IPL since last year, only Anshul Kamboj has a better strike rate than Malinga. His average sits in the same conversation as Josh Hazlewood, Krishna and Kamboj, which is a notable feat for someone who is neither the first nor the most famous among players sharing that surname.
For Sunrisers Hyderabad, Malinga remains one of the league’s best-kept secrets—subtle, smart, and capable of surprising even casual viewers. Once Cummins returns to the side, Hyderabad contests featuring SRH are set to draw extra attention, particularly for the old-ball bowling spells that Malinga is built to deliver.
