Sri Lanka‘s cricket board is still hopeful of going ahead with Sri Lanka’s tour of Pakistan. But currently, it is waiting for the final all-clear signal from the defence ministry accordingly a board official.
The story
Sri Lanka Cricket Secretary Mohan de Silva early informed that aid he was completely satisfied with the security arrangements of Pakistan for the visit of Sri Lankan cricket team. But there were reports of a possible terror attack that started doing rounds last week. The defence ministry involvement was the need of the hour then to investigate everything thoroughly before the cricketers start their journey.
An attack was executed on the Sri Lanka team during a Test match in Pakistan’s Lahore in March 2009. Six Sri Lankan players were badly injured when a few gunmen attacked their bus. Six Pakistan policemen and two civilians were killed. Since the attack, most of the international teams started avoiding touring to this South Asian nation. But then it was Sri Lankan team yet again who played a T20 match against Pakistan at Lahore in October 2017.
What the board thinks
Already ten prominent Sri Lankan cricketers refused to go to Pakistan even after assurance from the board. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) was not aware of any information relating to the safety of the Sri Lankan team. According to De Silva, “Earlier last month I visited Pakistan along with our security consultant and we were satisfied with the arrangements. They have promised security reserved for a head of state.”
Now after the threat news the board did not cancel the tour but asked Government intervention. The Government was asked to reassess the security situation in Pakistan and take the final call about the fate of the tournament. The board initially put the tour on hold last week after Sri Lanka’s prime minister’s office warned about the same and then requested the Government.
After the unavailability of the senior players, Sri Lanka announced two squads for the three One-Day Internationals and the three T20 matches. The six-match tour will commence on September 27.
