"He hits the yorkers pretty well..." - Former New Zealand star makes massive statement, names the bowler who can surpass Lasith Malinga

The four-time champions Chennai Super Kings are currently having a good run of form in the ongoing edition of the Indian Premier League. They are currently placed in the third spot of the points table of the tournament with five wins, four losses, and one match with no result in the 10 matches they played so far.

Apart from that, the young CSK bowler Matheesha Pathirana has emerged as one of the brilliant finds of the tournament. He has scalped seven wickets so far and proved his worth with very economical bowling. He also played a crucial role in a couple of matches during the death overs for the Chennai Super Kings.

Meanwhile, the former New Zealand cricketer Scott Styris has lavished his praises on the young Sri Lankan pacer and also dubbed him as the potential bowler who can surpass and beat the former legendary Sri Lankan pacer Lasith Malinga. Notably, Malinga had played earlier in the Indian Premier League for the five-time champions Mumbai Indians.

“I think Pathirana could be better than Malinga. I accept that it's a massive call because he's too early in his career. He's not as accurate as Malinga yet, but Malinga was at his best when he was bowling at 145kph. And he only had about 3 or 4 years where that was the case. When he had that speed, and then the change-ups came, you had to respect that pace. When his top speed was down to 135, you could probably look at the slower ball more and react to the Yorkers,” said Styris on Jio Cinema.

He can hit those Yorkers with that action - Scott Styris on Matheesha Pathirana

“What we've seen with Pathirana is that he's bowling at 145, 146, 148kph, so he has that natural advantage. He hits the Yorkers pretty well. As he naturally evolves and gets more experience, he can hit those Yorkers with that action as much as Malinga, but with a quicker speed and the ability for change-ups. He's the exciting talent for Sri Lanka and exciting talent for CSK,” he added later.