Sri Lanka pay price for tour nobody else wanted | Cricket - Hindustan Times
close_game
close_game

Sri Lanka pay price for tour nobody else wanted

AFP | By, Lahore
Mar 03, 2009 02:53 PM IST

Sri Lanka's cricketers paid a heavy price on Tuesday for agreeing to tour a country nobody else was prepared to visit.

Sri Lanka's cricketers paid a heavy price on Tuesday for agreeing to tour a country nobody else was prepared to visit.

HT Image
HT Image

They only stepped in after India cancelled a much-anticipated January-February series in Pakistan due to simmering political tensions between the two countries over the Mumbai terrorist attacks last November.

Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now.

That cancellation was the third major cricket event called off in Pakistan in the past year, after Australia refused to tour in March and the ICC postponed the elite eight-nation Champions Trophy set for August until 2009.

It was a disaster for the Pakistan Cricket Board who said at the time that the Indian pullout would lose them least 25 million dollars.

While Sri Lanka initially committed to fill the Indian void the tour came into question after the country's sports minister, Gamini Lokuge, disbanded the interim national cricket board and sacked its chairman Arjuna Ranatunga.

But in December Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse finally gave the green light, making the team the first to play a Test in Pakistan since South Africa in October 2007.

"Sport is an effective means of promoting connectivity between nations and thereby enhancing friendship and mutual goodwill between countries," Sri Lanka's Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama was quoted as saying at the time.

Barely two months later and his team was being helicoptered out of Pakistan's eastern city of Lahore after masked gunman opened fire on their team bus, wounding eight members of the tour party -- seven players and a coach.

The Sri Lankan team first played international cricket in 1975, and were awarded Test status in 1981, which made them the eighth Test playing nation.

Routinely seen as a cricketing minnow, they transformed themselves into a major force during the 1990s, winning the 1996 World Cup by beating Australia in the finals.

Since then they have continued to be a major force, reaching the finals of the 2007 World Cup where they lost to the Aussies while nurturing some of the best talent in the world.

Perhaps their best-known star is spin-king Muttiah Muralitharan, who has underpinned their success by backing up the batting heroics of Sanath Jayasuriya and the now-retired Aravinda de Silva.

The injured players included star batsman Thilan Samaraweera, captain Mahela Jayawardene, vice captain Kumar Sangakkara, Tharanga Paranavithana, Thilina Thushara and Ajantha Mendis. None have serious injuries.

The tour was immediately cancelled with Rajapakse condemning the "cowardly terrorist attack targeting the Sri Lankan cricket team".

It was an inglorious end to a series that had already been split into two parts with the venues of some of matches changed at the last minute.

Sri Lanka were initially due to play three one-dayers in Karachi, Lahore and Faisalabad in January but the third venue was dropped at Si Lanka's request, with no more details given.

The one-dayers went off without a hitch, ending on January 24 with the Sri Lankans winning the series 2-1 before the team left the country.

They returned on February 14 to play two Tests, with the first in Karachi ending in a draw before the second was called off on Tuesday after Sri Lanka posted 606 in their first innings. Pakistan were 110 without loss in reply.

Stay updated with the latest Cricket News, IPL Live Scores, and get exclusive insights with the RR vs DC Live Score, IPL 2024 Schedule, match highlights, and more. Explore a comprehensive Cricket Schedule, track the race for the Purple Cap and Orange Cap in IPL 2024, check Virat Kohli performance and stay ahead with all the cricket-related updates on the Hindustan Times website and app.
SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
Share this article
SHARE
Story Saved
Live Score
OPEN APP
Saved Articles
Following
My Reads
Sign out
New Delhi 0C
Friday, March 29, 2024
Start 14 Days Free Trial Subscribe Now
Follow Us On