Sri Lanka Cricket tells players to stay in Pakistan despite security concerns, threatening a "formal review" of the tour.
In a move that has raised eyebrows among cricket fans worldwide, Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) has instructed its players to continue their tour of Pakistan as scheduled, despite several team members expressing fears for their safety following Tuesday's suicide bombing in Islamabad. The bomb blast outside a court killed 12 people and wounded 27 others.
The SLC issued a statement saying that any player who returns home despite their directives would face a "formal review" with an appropriate decision to be made. To mitigate the security risks, replacements will be sent to ensure the tour continues without disruption.
Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Mohsin Naqvi welcomed Sri Lanka's decision to continue the tour, calling it an example of sportsmanship and solidarity. He met with Sri Lankan players at their Islamabad hotel on Wednesday and assured them of their safety.
However, tensions remain high as six Sri Lankan players were wounded in March 2009 when gunmen opened fire on their team bus in Lahore, a incident that led to international teams staying away from Pakistan for nearly a decade.
The tour's security has been tightened since the attack, with additional measures taken to safeguard the visiting team. The PCB moved the second one-day international scheduled for Thursday by a day and pushed Saturday's third match back to Sunday, both of which will be played in Rawalpindi.
Sri Lanka are set to play a three-match ODI series against Pakistan before taking part in a T20 tri-series tournament against the hosts and Zimbabwe. The tour is already off to a dramatic start with Pakistan beating Sri Lanka by six runs in the opening ODI, despite the ongoing security concerns.
In a move that has raised eyebrows among cricket fans worldwide, Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) has instructed its players to continue their tour of Pakistan as scheduled, despite several team members expressing fears for their safety following Tuesday's suicide bombing in Islamabad. The bomb blast outside a court killed 12 people and wounded 27 others.
The SLC issued a statement saying that any player who returns home despite their directives would face a "formal review" with an appropriate decision to be made. To mitigate the security risks, replacements will be sent to ensure the tour continues without disruption.
Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Mohsin Naqvi welcomed Sri Lanka's decision to continue the tour, calling it an example of sportsmanship and solidarity. He met with Sri Lankan players at their Islamabad hotel on Wednesday and assured them of their safety.
However, tensions remain high as six Sri Lankan players were wounded in March 2009 when gunmen opened fire on their team bus in Lahore, a incident that led to international teams staying away from Pakistan for nearly a decade.
The tour's security has been tightened since the attack, with additional measures taken to safeguard the visiting team. The PCB moved the second one-day international scheduled for Thursday by a day and pushed Saturday's third match back to Sunday, both of which will be played in Rawalpindi.
Sri Lanka are set to play a three-match ODI series against Pakistan before taking part in a T20 tri-series tournament against the hosts and Zimbabwe. The tour is already off to a dramatic start with Pakistan beating Sri Lanka by six runs in the opening ODI, despite the ongoing security concerns.
anyway gotta respect the PCB for taking extra precautions tho, cant have any player getting hurt especially not in those conditions, but still seems like a pretty crazy move from sri lanka cricket 
. I mean, just because they're athletes doesn't mean they should have to put their lives at risk, you know? The fact that the SLC is basically telling them to tough it out and face security concerns head-on is pretty concerning 
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. To me, it just feels like a way for the PCB to avoid taking real action to ensure player safety 
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. Now, with those same players on the field again, I hope they're not putting their lives at risk unnecessarily 
. The PCB needs to do better than just moving matches around or adding extra security measures – they need to make sure these athletes feel safe and protected 
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. and now pakistan is welcoming them with open arms but still the security risks are real...it's a tricky situation for all involved 
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i feel bad for the sl players who got hurt in lahore back in 2009 that was a super scary experience for them and their families i get why they're hesitant now but at the same time, pakistan has taken extra precautions to ensure safety & it's not like they're asking them to ignore all security measures 
hopefully everything goes smoothly & they can focus on playing some great cricket 
. It's like they're ignoring the history and just hoping for a miracle. Still, I guess that's what makes this tour so intriguing... will it be a success or another disaster? Only time will tell 
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Like what even is that kind of management? It's one thing to want to finish a tour and play some matches, but not at the cost of people's lives?! 
Their security concerns are legit though - all those injuries in 2009 still fresh in my mind... 
And what about the emotional toll on these players? They're already feeling anxious and scared, and now they're being forced to put on a brave face for the sake of their team?! 
Not cool, SLC. Not cool at all. 
i get that sportsmanship and all but what about human life tho? 
the security concerns are legit, i mean who wants to be in Pakistan right now? 
The security risks are real and they've been there before too. What happened in Lahore was a major incident and it's not something to be taken lightly.
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, SLC is like "just chill, guys, it's all good". And then they threaten these players with a "formal review" if they leave? Sounds like a setup to me... Like, what are they really trying to hide? The tour's already been moved around and security tightened - sounds like an excuse to me... I'm not saying the Pakistanis aren't worried, but it feels like SLC is covering their own backside here 
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. The security situation is just too concerning and i think they should reconsider their decision 
. Its not like its just a normal crime scene, its a war zone right now 
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pakistan has been tryin to get back into the cricket scene after that incident in 2009, but this is just too much... the security measures cant be enough, im tellin ya! 