Cricket World Cup 2015: Sri Lanka's Biggest Headache is Lasith Malinga's Fitness

Sri Lanka's ageing stars will be hoping for one last hurrah at the Cricket World Cup 2015. The recent absence of arguably their most important thirty-something, Lasith Malinga, is their biggest headache ahead of this year's 50-over showpiece.

With Tillakaratne Dilshan, Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara boasting over 1,000 ODI caps between them, there's no shortage of experience at the top of the order. Throw in the vastly underrated Angelo Mathews and the Sri Lanka batting line-up has a quartet of potential match-winners.

That star quality is lacking in a bowling attack that has plenty of craft, but little in the way of explosive wicket takers, Malinga excepted of course.

International cricket's premier death bowler hasn't played since 16 September after undergoing ankle surgery. Without him, Sri Lanka have won just seven of 19 ODIs.

Malinga was pencilled in for the final two matches of their recent series in New Zealand but failed to appear in either.

In his absence, the Sri Lankan attack struggled against New Zealand's powerful top-order, conceding over 300 in successive games in Wellington.

That's not to say the Sri Lankan bowling is without talent. Rangana Herath was the leading Test wicket-taker in 2014 after all, and Nuwan Kulasekara and Thisara Perera are canny operators. However, they can't carry an attack, especially in antipodean conditions, in the way that Malinga can.

Malinga is the only member of Sri Lanka's 15-man World Cup squad who has a one-day bowling average of under 30. Nobody can match his 50-over strike rate of a wicket every 31.5 deliveries.

When it all dovetails together, the results can be spectacular.

As Rahul Dravid noted at ESPN Cricinfo: “He's so critical to their side because one of the areas where Sri Lanka would struggle would be in bowling at the death. If you remove Malinga from that line-up and you look around, you don't really see anyone else [who can bowl at the death].”

The 31-year-old has experience of performing on the biggest occasions too. His five for 56 helped Sri Lanka to victory over Pakistan in the final of the 2014 Asia Cup.

Malinga's tactical nous shouldn't be underestimated, either. He led the Sri Lankans to victory in last year's World Twenty20.

Any top-order that features the likes of Dilshan, Jayawardene, Sangakkara and Mathews will always be in the game. Whether the bowlers can match them remains to be seen.

As former opener turned chief selector Sanath Jayasuriya told Reuters, via the Daily Mail: 

"

We lack experience in our bowling at the moment in the absence of Lasith Malinga which is huge. (Nuwan) Kulasekera and (Suranga) Lakmal have come back from injuries and are bowling alright. Lasith has shown no signs of discomfort and he will be increasing his workload gradually. I think he will be alright for the World Cup.

"

If he is alright, then the Sri Lankans will have a fighting chance.

Stats courtesy of ESPN Cricinfo and Howstat.com.