PAK Vs SL Series: Memories Of 2009 Terrorist Attack As Sri Lanka Players Forced To Stay In Pakistan

The Pakistan vs Sri Lanka ODI series has been thrown into disarray following the deadly terrorist attack in Islamabad, which has left at least a dozen people dead and many more injured.

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), fearing yet another cancellation of a bilateral series on their soil, went into proactive mode, with Chairman Mohsin Naqvi assuring “state-level” protection to the visiting team.

That, however, hasn’t assuaged the Sri Lankan players’ fears. If media reports are to be believed, as many as eight Lankan players wanted to leave Pakistan and return home, very understandably, fearing for their safety.

Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC), however, put their foot down, threatening a “formal review” against any member of the visiting contingent opting to return home.

“If any player, players, or member of the support staff returns despite SLC’s directives, a formal review will be conducted,” a statement read, “…and an appropriate decision will be made…”

Memories Of The 2009 Terrorist Attack

It’s hard to understand Sri Lanka Cricket’s position, forcing the tour to go ahead. Cancellation of a bilateral series will no doubt result in financial losses, but prioritising money over their players’ safety is a tough decision to defend.

Even though the Pakistani rangers are reportedly protecting the Lankan players now, it should be of little peace of mind in a nation where even politicians are assassinated in broad daylight.

One needs to look just 16 years back, when the Sri Lankan side was visiting Pakistan after being afforded “presidential-style security”. What they got instead was a security arrangement that Muttiah Muralitharan termed “the worst he had ever seen”.

Normally, it wouldn’t have mattered, but for a nation with a tendency to turn into a war zone at a moment’s notice, it proved disastrous for the Sri Lankan side and, in retrospect, for Pakistani cricket.

As the Sri Lankan team made their way to the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore, their bus was ambushed in the city centre. 12 gunmen, belonging to a Deobandi extremist group, opened fire on the vehicle, which resulted in six players – including captain Mahela Jayawardene and vice-captain Kumar Sangakkara – sustaining injuries.

Ahsan Raza, one of the finest umpires to come out of Pakistan, almost lost his life after being shot twice. Fellow umpire Chris Broad, father of England pacer Stuart Broad, showed extreme bravery to lie on top of Raza to apply pressure on the wound, which reportedly saved his colleague’s life.

Other than the cricketing contingent, two civilians lost their lives, as did six Pakistani policemen.

Cricket Leaves Pakistan

The result of the attack was, in a word, catastrophic for Pakistan, and for South Asia as a whole. The insurance for cricket matches rose through the roof across the Indian subcontinent.

The worst impact was that cricket essentially left Pakistan, a nation with a rich cricketing history. Following the cancellation of the Sri Lankan tour, New Zealand and Bangladesh also called off their scheduled visits.

Pakistan also lost hosting rights for the 2011 World Cup, with the matches being shifted to India, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh.

In fact, Pakistan wouldn’t host another international cricket team on their soil for almost a decade. During this time, the PCB was forced to host their “home” matches in the United Arab Emirates.

In 2015, Zimbabwe became the first Test-playing nation to tour Pakistan, and Sri Lanka showed immense courage to return to the Gaddafi Stadium in 2019 – exactly 10 years since that fateful attack.

Since then, Pakistan has slowly and steadily rebuilt their status as a safe-ish venue for international cricket, hosting teams like England. Venues like Faisalabad welcomed back foreign teams after a decade or so.

However, this recent setback can undo all that. The lack of security and utter chaos in Pakistan shouldn’t be viewed in isolation. Extremism has been on the rise across the subcontinent, with a massive bomb blast in New Delhi killing 13 people in India. In March, the Bangladesh Army Chief warned of potential terrorist attacks in their territory as well.

In such a volatile situation, the Sri Lankan cricketing hierarchy risking the lives of their players and staff over the “assurances” provided by Mohsin Naqvi seems shortsighted and foolhardy. One can only hope and pray that it’s not the innocent cricketers who have to pay the price.

As of now, the second Pakistan vs Sri Lanka ODI match will take place on November 14 at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium.