The Pakistan vs Sri Lanka ODI series escaped an episode of huge embarrassment after the touring players decided to withdraw their decision to return home over security concerns. The crisis followed a suicide blast in Islamabad on Tuesday, which killed 12 people. It occurred just before the first One-Day International match between Pakistan and Sri Lanka was to start in Rawalpindi. Understandably concerned about their safety, as many as 8 Sri Lankan players reportedly decided to return home before their cricket board stepped in and convinced them to stay.
Thanking the Sri Lankan team for their U-turn, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chief Mohsin Naqvi arrived on the training ground on Thursday, thanked the visiting players for their decision, preventing major embarrassment for Pakistan.
The Lankan team’s security concerns were a result of historical trauma. The touring islanders survived a terrorist attack in 2009 when the bus carrying them to the Gaddafi Cricket stadium in Lahore was attacked by gunmen, in which six cricketers were injured, while six Pakistani police personnel and two civilians were killed.
Pakistan military chief directly intervened to salvage the tour of the visiting Sri Lankan cricket team following the suicide attack in Islamabad, the interior ministry said.
Mohsin Naqvi told the Senate that Field Marshal Asim Munir facilitated the talks with Sri Lankan top officials, when the Lankan cricketers showed weariness to play after the attack.
Sri Lanka’s cricket board had said that its team’s ongoing tour of Pakistan will proceed, following the high-level exchanges that saved the situation for Pakistan.
