Former Sri Lanka captain Sanath Jayasuriya is happy to welcome Pakistani all-rounder Shoaib Malik in his company.      

Malik, who will be 38 on Saturday, became the eighth player to play international cricket in four different decades.

Malik made his international (ODI) debut in 1999 playing against West Indies at Sharjah. His Test debut was in 2001 (against Bangladesh in Multan) and also a part of the recent home series against Bangladesh.

Malik, who has captained Pakistan in the past, joins the likes of Wilfred Rhodes, Dennis Brian Close, Frank Woolley, Sachin Tendulkar, Jack Hobbs, George Gunn and Sanath Jayasuriya in the elite list.

"Shoaib is a versatile player and for some reason he always used to do well against us. He made plenty of runs against us and was always a threat with the ball," Cricket Country quoted Jayasuriya as saying.

"The secret for his longevity is his fitness. It is remarkable effort to stretch his career thus far. It is an extremely difficult feat nowadays given the volume of cricket. I don't see very many players having careers that are that long, unless they are extremely fit,” he added.