Tuesday 17th March, 2009 15 Aftermath of Pakistan tour

bus had been shot out and he was unprepared. They were sitting nations. in grave personal danger, exposed ducks. Only the courage of a brave It would appear that no inter- to gunfire at the front of the bus. bus driver saved their lives as he national cricket will be played in But he was hell bent on getting us fearlessly drove the bus carrying Pakistan in the foreseeable to safety and somehow he got us the precious cargo away from the future. This means that players moving again. Had Khalil not terrorists in hot pursuit. like Younis Khan, who scored a acted with such courage and pres- Reports indicate that there memorable triple century in the ence of mind, most of us would were warnings of a possible first Test, may have to be satisfied have been killed.” attack on the Sri Lankan team, but with international matches We are fortunate that such a apparently such warnings had played outside Pakistan. The calamity did not take place. been ignored. An anonymous cricket crazy Pakistani fans will Imagine the situation if even one caller had asked the organisers to have to wait and pray until the of the cricketers lost his life. take the Sri Lankan players on a day dawns when international To continue with the excerpts different route. It is surprising cricket can come back to from Sangakkar's letter: that this anonymous call was Pakistan. "Will I go back? When you have taken seriously and the organis- A comment made by a been through what we have experi- ers followed the instructions with- Pakistani cricket fan which enced, when you have been target- out checking on the authenticity appeared in ‘Cricinfo’ symbolised ed by terrorists yourself and been of the call. An intelligence warn- the gratitude of the cricket fans so fortunate to escape it, it changes ing of a possible attack is ignored of Pakistan to the Sri Lankan your thinking. It is a big question while an anonymous telephone cricket team. He had stated that which cannot be answered now. I call is acted upon. Such amateur- the first time he had cried in his suspect, too, for us it can only be ish handling of security creates life was when his father died and answered as an individual. Our serious doubts that everything the second time was when he families will never feel the same was not as they appeared to be. heard the news of this barbaric about us leaving to play in Why was the bus carrying the attack on the Sri Lankan cricket Pakistan. That is sad - for Pakistan team delayed? It is team. He was at a loss for words Pakistan and world cricket." reported that some incident at the to describe his agony on seeing These are words spoken by a hotel caused the delay.Did anyone how the brave Sri Lankan crick- very sane person. Not a coward care to find out the cause for this eters, who had come to Pakistan by any means and not a fool delay? when no other country was pre- either. On the contrary, he is It is hoped that the ongoing pared to visit Pakistan, were regarded by the cricketing world investigations will reveal the per- treated in Pakistan. as an astute thinker and a man of petrators of this dastardly act. But Now the world knows that courage who minces no words in it is unlikely that any cricketers are not immune to ter- expressing an opinion. foreign team rorist attacks. Other Test playing It is heartening to know that would nations should not think that Sangakkara had gone on record their country is safe from such saying that it wasn't a mistake to !Letter attacks. Some countries always tour Pakistan. It is reported that visit think that it is only in the sub- the President of Sri Lanka has Pakistan in the fore- continent that such attacks can congratulated Sangakkara on the seeable future. It is sad. The take place. We must remember comments he had made. cricket crazy Pakistanis were just that it was in Munich, that 11 It was during this tour that we awakening from a long slumber members of the Israeli Olympic witnessed for the first time and went out of their way to wel- team were killed by Palestinian Pakistanis waving Sri Lankan come the Sri Lankans. For 14 long terrorists. Eight members of the flags and cheering for the Sri months, Pakistan had not played a Black September organization Lankans. Moving were the Test match. And now their heroes entered the heavily guarded Sri Lankan cricket player Tharanga Paranavitana rests at a hospital in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Thursday, March 5, 2009. moments, when hundreds of were playing Test cricket in their Olympic village at around 4.00 Paranavitana was one of the seven Sri Lankan cricketers injured as gunmen ambushed their bus en route to the Gaddafi Pakistani children were waving own country. It was unbelievable. a.m., killed two members of the Stadium in Lahore on March 3. (Files) the flags of both Pakistan and Sri And in the midst of a Test match Israeli team and took nine other proper review of the Test place. It turned out to be an as a success both by way of Lanka. There were banners when they were waiting to see members of the Israeli team as series between Pakistan unprecedented success. I am not results and the warm welcome thanking Sri Lanka for playing in their captain, the hero of the first hostages. The combined efforts of Aand Sri Lanka seems aware of the security provided at given to the Sri Lankan players. Pakistan. The cricket-crazy Test, to arrive at the crease, all Israel and Germany could not unrealistic at a time when the the time, but despite the strained This tour was more or less a Pakistanis were delirious with hell broke loose. It was the end - save the lives of the hostages, as whole cricket world is stunned by relations between the two coun- goodwill mission. Sri Lanka joy to see their country playing and every Pakistani knew it. the terrorists killed all nine the first ever terrorist attack tries, nothing untoward hap- wanted to show its gratitude to a another country - in Pakistan. No country knows better than Israeli athletes, while the whole against a cricket team. When that pened. country which had helped them The first Test was incident Sri Lanka the agony of waiting world looked on helplessly. team happens to be our own I would like to quote from the in their hour of need. Just before free. The pitch at Karachi was the without any foreign teams visit- This goes to show that no national team one feels so badly editorial comment in ‘The the 1996 World Cup, when some subject of criticism as several ing your country. Brendon country is immune from terrorist shaken that you simply cannot Sportstar’ (April 3, 2004): countries did not want to play in records were established by the Kuruppu, who was the manager of attacks. The ICC cannot apply think of anything other than the "What an epoch-making series Sri Lanka in view of terrorist batsmen of both sides. Mahela the Sri Lankan team to Pakistan double standards in demanding horror of this barbaric act. it has turned out to be! Call it his- threats, it was Pakistan and India Jayawardene, in his last series as on this fateful tour, was making VVIP security from countries in "This is the darkest day in the toric, momentous, eventful or which came to Sri Lanka's assis- captain and Thilan Samaraweera, his Test debut in April, 1987, the sub-continent while ignoring history of Pakistan cricket" memorable, no description seems tance. set up a new world record of 437 against New Zealand. He had just security measures from countries wrote Kamran Abbasi. This is appropriate to mirror truly the Sri Lanka would have been for the fourth wicket while the completed a double hundred when like Australia, England, South indeed the darkest moment in mood sweeping across the sub-con- satisfied with the security provid- Pakistan skipper Younis Khan hit news reached the ground that a Africa, New Zealand and the West cricket history. This is the first tinent ever since India and ed during the first leg of the tour. a triple century. bomb explosion at the Pettah bus Indies. Even when London was time that cricketers have been Pakistan began the cricket series. If they were not satisfied, they As the third day of the second stand had killed over 150 and hit by bomb explosions Australia the target of terrorist attacks. The visit to Pakistan by an would not have gone for the sec- Test dawned, there were many injured nearly 300. The tour ended played in England without mak- Cricket has in the past been Indian team and its impact can- ond leg of the tour unless proper possibilities. Sri Lanka were on there and no foreign team came to ing any complaint. the binding force which brought not just be measured in terms of security arrangements were in their way to the stadium deter- Sri Lanka for the next five years. In 1984, when Sri Lanka warring nations together. Cricket runs, wickets and victories. It goes place. It is easy to be wise after mined to get 19 more wickets to During these barren years, the toured England Ranjan had helped countries to forget far beyond the realm of sport and the event. win the Test and the series. Sri Lankan cricketers led a Madugalle was knocked out by their differences, at least momen- is more in the area of human rela- The reactions of the man who Pakistan, on the other hand, may nomadic existence with no inter- an unknown assailant outside tarily. Cricketers, especially in tionship and understanding is most likely to take over the cap- have been determined to give national cricket being played in the team hotel in Canterbury, his the sub-continent, have been between the people of the coun- taincy from Mahela Jayawardene another good batting display and their own country. eyesight was affected. Yet, Sri loved and respected like demi- tries who have been at the logger- are important, not only because go all out for a win. Mahela Aravinda de Silva was one of Lanka did not complain that ade- gods. True, there have been heads, since partition. The spirit he maybe the country's next cap- Jayawardene would have wanted the worst affected. He was emerg- quate security was not provided. instances of empty bottles and that surged through the series, be tain (he has since been named to end his illustrious career as Sri ing as Sri Lanka's best batsman, Now that cricketers are not other objects being thrown into it in Karachi, Rawalpindi captain), but because of the high Lanka's captain on a high and his but opportunities were limited as immune to terrorist attacks, the the ground, but these were the Peshawar or Lahore, underlined regard he is held in the cricketing determination may have been the the fixtures that came Sri Lanka's ICC must insist on the best possi- reactions of some frustrated the cementing force of sport as an world. On his way back to Sri key factor for Sri Lanka to suc- way were few and far between. ble security being provided for spectators who were unable to instrument in unifying people in Lanka, having suffered minor ceed. All these hopes and aspira- The present situation in Pakistan the safety of the players in all bear up their team's imminent their quest for peace and prosperi- injuries, the eloquent Kumar tions vanished into thin air as 12 is much worse. In Sri Lanka no countries where cricket is being defeat. No one would have ty.” Sangakkara penned his thoughts masked gunmen carrying AK 47s, foreign players were ever target- played. It is not correct to isolate thought of deliberately causing Similar sentiments would in an article (which appeared in RPGs and grenades took on the Sri ed. But now that a foreign cricket a few countries, simply because any hurt to a player. have been expressed had the Sri cricinfo), from which I quote: Lankan players outside the stadi- team has been the target in there have been terrorist Pakistan and India had not Lankan tour ended without any "The truth is we owe our lives um in an unscheduled contest. Pakistan, the PCB is faced with a attacks in those countries. been on visiting terms for years untoward incidents. The first leg to the courageous Mohammad Unfortunately, only one side was situation where no amount of Terrorists can strike anywhere, when that epoch making tour of of the tour, during which the ODI Khalil, the driver. I will forever be armed and prepared while the explaining will be able to satisfy anytime. Pakistan by India in 2004 took series was played can be termed grateful to him. The tyres of the other side was unarmed and the ICC or the other Test playing M. A. Cyril

DUBAI, United Arab the Emirates’ bid, predicting that Emirates (AP) - The International Abu Dhabi and Dubai “will be the Cricket Council confirmed ICC confirms South Africa scene for top-level international All Nation Int. Monday that South Africa will cricket in the future.” host this year’s Champions Trophy The ICC board also agreed to Swimming Meet - a competition that was moved for Champions Trophy hold next year’s World Twenty20 from Pakistan because of security from April 30-May 16, 2010, in St. eight-team competition to cerns. The decision to concerns and then pulled from Sri Lucia, Guyana, Barbados and St. South Africa. move the venue to Sri next Friday Lanka after worries of rain. Kitts. The board - holding dis- Lanka was later ques- ICC president David Morgan International cricket officials Delgoda, W. D. Vithana cussions in a global tele- tioned because of the like- Biyagama Swimming, Diving called it a “sensible decision” after now face a decision on whether to conference - also identified lihood of rain during the and Life Saving Association months of uncertainty over the keep Pakistan as co-host for the the Wanderers in competition. The annual inter-house Chairman, Hema Kumara venue for the Sept. 24-Oct. 5 tour- 2011 World Cup following the Johannesburg and Besides South Africa, swimming meet of All Nation Gunasekara. nament. ambush of the Sri Lankan cricket Centurion near Pretoria as the ICC considered moving International College, Two hundred students “We now have clarity on the team in Lahore earlier this month. the likely venues, Morgan the tournament to Ganemulla, Bollatha, will be will participate in the meet. subject and we can make firm Seven players and a coach were said. Haroon Lorgat Australia or the United held next Friday (20), com- The meet is organised by plans,” Morgan said after the ICC wounded when gunman fired on Original host Pakistan Arab Emirates. board voted unanimously to back their bus. Six police officers and mencing 9.00 a.m. at the col- the College Swimming was stripped of the tournament ICC chief executive Haroon an executive committee recom- the driver of a van taking officials lege swimming pool. Advisor, W. Thilak Ratna last year because of security con- Lorgat gave particular praise to mendation last week to move the to the match were killed. The chief guest will be Kumara.