Sri Lanka skipper says experience saved team
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AP
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Mart 05, 2009 00:00
COLOMBO, Sri Lanka - Tuesday’s attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team is among the worst assaults on a sports team history has ever seen, but according to team captain Mahela Jayawardene, it could have been a lot worse.
Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene says living in a country troubled by civil war helped save his team as it came under fire from gunmen in Pakistan.
The Sri Lankan team returned on a special charter flight yesterday to the capital Colombo, where the exhausted-looking players had an emotional private reunion with their families. Batsman Thilan Samaraweera was seen being taken from the airport to a hospital in Colombo.
Jayawardene said Tuesday's attack in Lahore should prompt cricket authorities to put player security higher on the list of criteria in assessing the viability of tours.
"This is something for all of us to realize, whoever made all these decisions... that we need to think more than cricket," said Jayawardene. "It's about families, livelihoods, kids, wives, parents everybody. We need to look at the bigger picture and hopefully in the future we can make right decisions looking at all these and not just the small things."
Serious wounds
At least a dozen men ambushed the Sri Lanka team with rifles, grenades and rocket launchers, converging on the squad's convoy as it drove near Gaddafi Stadium on its way to play the third day of the second test against Pakistan.
Even though the bus was peppered with 25 bullet holes, none of the players were killed. Seven players and a coach sustained injuries, none life-threatening, but six policemen and a driver died. An umpire was being treated for serious wounds.
Jayawardene said his players' instinctive reaction to the attack arose from their lives in Sri Lanka, long affected by civil war.
"We have been brought up in a background of terrorist activities," Jayawardene told reporters at the airport. "We are used to hearing, seeing these things. Firing, bombings. So we ducked under our seats when the firing began. It was like natural instinct."
"We were all tucked under the seats," said Jayawardene, who was cut on the foot by debris. "Our guys were getting hurt and screaming but we couldn't help each other. We were just hoping that we will not get hit. None of us thought that we would come alive out of the situation."
"We had no defense in our system, we just hoped that we won't get hit. There were bullets flying all over the place, apparently there was mortar attack which luckily missed the bus," said Jayawardene.
Batsman Tharanga Paranavitana came closest to a serious injury, with a bullet brushing his chest.
Even before the attacks, other nations had pulled out of Pakistan tours on security grounds. India and Australia had canceled tours, and New Zealand said yesterday that it was likely to call off its December tour. Sri Lanka was called up at late notice, after India canceled its tour.
Host status
The International Cricket Council had already stripped Pakistan of hosting rights for the Champions Trophy one-day tournament set for this year, and said Tuesday it would review whether Pakistan could be a co-host for the 2011 World Cup.
Working in pairs, the attackers in Lahore carried walkie-talkies and backpacks stuffed with water, dried fruit and other high-energy food - a sign they anticipated a protracted siege and may have been planning to take the players hostage, an official said.
None of the gunmen were killed and all apparently escaped after the battle with the convoy's security detail. Pakistan police said that it had made arrests in connection with the attack, but those detained were not the gunmen. The Punjab provincial government took out advertisements in newspapers yesterday offering a $125,000 reward.
Veteran Sri Lanka spinner Muttiah Muralitharan told reporters on his return to Colombo that he feared for his life during the attack.
"All the while bullets were being sprayed at our bus, people around me were shouting," he said. "I am glad to be back." It was a sentiment echoed by Jayawardene, who had announced pre-tour that he would step down from the Sri Lanka captaincy after the visit to Pakistan.
"I'm very happy that I could see my family, and come back to Sri Lanka in one piece," he said. "Every breath I take I'm glad that I can take it without a problem."
Broad slams security
ICC match referee Chris Broad accused Pakistan security forces of leaving cricketers as "sitting ducks" when they were attacked.
"There was not a sign of a policeman anywhere," said Broad, who escaped injury in the attack. "They had clearly left the scene and left us to be sitting ducks." Pakistan Cricket Board chief Ijaz Butt contested Broad's interpretation of events, asking "How can Chris Broad say this when six policemen were killed?"
Broad insisted that whatever security arrangements were made were insufficient, pointing out that the players and officials took the same route to the stadium every day. "I had an inkling before the tour that something was going to happen," Broad said. "I raised my concerns before the tour started and assured me that all security would be taken care of, presidential-style security. And clearly that didn't happen."
The Sri Lankan team returned on a special charter flight yesterday to the capital Colombo, where the exhausted-looking players had an emotional private reunion with their families. Batsman Thilan Samaraweera was seen being taken from the airport to a hospital in Colombo.
Jayawardene said Tuesday's attack in Lahore should prompt cricket authorities to put player security higher on the list of criteria in assessing the viability of tours.
"This is something for all of us to realize, whoever made all these decisions... that we need to think more than cricket," said Jayawardene. "It's about families, livelihoods, kids, wives, parents everybody. We need to look at the bigger picture and hopefully in the future we can make right decisions looking at all these and not just the small things."
Serious wounds
At least a dozen men ambushed the Sri Lanka team with rifles, grenades and rocket launchers, converging on the squad's convoy as it drove near Gaddafi Stadium on its way to play the third day of the second test against Pakistan.
Even though the bus was peppered with 25 bullet holes, none of the players were killed. Seven players and a coach sustained injuries, none life-threatening, but six policemen and a driver died. An umpire was being treated for serious wounds.
Jayawardene said his players' instinctive reaction to the attack arose from their lives in Sri Lanka, long affected by civil war.
"We have been brought up in a background of terrorist activities," Jayawardene told reporters at the airport. "We are used to hearing, seeing these things. Firing, bombings. So we ducked under our seats when the firing began. It was like natural instinct."
"We were all tucked under the seats," said Jayawardene, who was cut on the foot by debris. "Our guys were getting hurt and screaming but we couldn't help each other. We were just hoping that we will not get hit. None of us thought that we would come alive out of the situation."
"We had no defense in our system, we just hoped that we won't get hit. There were bullets flying all over the place, apparently there was mortar attack which luckily missed the bus," said Jayawardene.
Batsman Tharanga Paranavitana came closest to a serious injury, with a bullet brushing his chest.
Even before the attacks, other nations had pulled out of Pakistan tours on security grounds. India and Australia had canceled tours, and New Zealand said yesterday that it was likely to call off its December tour. Sri Lanka was called up at late notice, after India canceled its tour.
Host status
The International Cricket Council had already stripped Pakistan of hosting rights for the Champions Trophy one-day tournament set for this year, and said Tuesday it would review whether Pakistan could be a co-host for the 2011 World Cup.
Working in pairs, the attackers in Lahore carried walkie-talkies and backpacks stuffed with water, dried fruit and other high-energy food - a sign they anticipated a protracted siege and may have been planning to take the players hostage, an official said.
None of the gunmen were killed and all apparently escaped after the battle with the convoy's security detail. Pakistan police said that it had made arrests in connection with the attack, but those detained were not the gunmen. The Punjab provincial government took out advertisements in newspapers yesterday offering a $125,000 reward.
Veteran Sri Lanka spinner Muttiah Muralitharan told reporters on his return to Colombo that he feared for his life during the attack.
"All the while bullets were being sprayed at our bus, people around me were shouting," he said. "I am glad to be back." It was a sentiment echoed by Jayawardene, who had announced pre-tour that he would step down from the Sri Lanka captaincy after the visit to Pakistan.
"I'm very happy that I could see my family, and come back to Sri Lanka in one piece," he said. "Every breath I take I'm glad that I can take it without a problem."
Broad slams security
ICC match referee Chris Broad accused Pakistan security forces of leaving cricketers as "sitting ducks" when they were attacked.
"There was not a sign of a policeman anywhere," said Broad, who escaped injury in the attack. "They had clearly left the scene and left us to be sitting ducks." Pakistan Cricket Board chief Ijaz Butt contested Broad's interpretation of events, asking "How can Chris Broad say this when six policemen were killed?"
Broad insisted that whatever security arrangements were made were insufficient, pointing out that the players and officials took the same route to the stadium every day. "I had an inkling before the tour that something was going to happen," Broad said. "I raised my concerns before the tour started and assured me that all security would be taken care of, presidential-style security. And clearly that didn't happen."