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| The terror game goes on | | Lankan Cricket Team Attacked in Lahore | | 6 Players, Umpire Injured; World Concerned
Lahore, March 3: Terror struck cricket on Tuesday when the Sri Lankan cricket team was ambushed by a gang of highly trained terrorists in Lahore. Six players and an umpire were injured in the incident.
The Sri Lankan team, in Lahore to play in the second test, were on their way to the Gaddafi Stadium, early today, when the incident happened.
The players were air-lifted from the Gaddafi Stadium to the Allama Iqbal International Airport in Lahore and now are on their way to Abu Dhabi from there they would proceed to Colombo.
The Sri Lankan High Commission while confirming the evacuation also, officially, revealed the names of the players who were injured in the dastardly act. The team members who were wounded are Kumar Sangakkara, Ajantha Mendis, Suranga Lakmal and Thilina Thushara and Assistant Coach Mr Paul Farbrace.
Out of these Thilan Samaraweera and Tharanga Paranavitana were admitted to the Lahore Hospital before being brought back to the stadium and flown to the airport on a Pakistan Air Force helicopter. Pakistan Cricket Board's Director Operation Zakir Khan and one of the doctors working with the board are accompanying the returning players.
Former Pakistan Test cricketer Ahsan Raza, who was the reserve umpire for the Pakistan-Sri Lanka series, was also critically injured in the attack.
Raza was traveling in the umpires' van that was going with the Sri Lankan team bus to the Gaddafi Stadium,
Raza, a former spinner, had played nine Tests and 49 One-Day Internationals. He recently turned an international umpire.
The Sri Lankan cricket board has cancelled the tour with immediate effect and a confirmation came from President Rajpakse’s office that the Sri Lankan team had indeed been called back by the government it saw no way to continue with the tour.
Meanwhile, The International Cricket Council (ICC) has called in an emergency meeting to assess the situation and take stock.
The attack on the cricket players is also expected to affect the 2011 World Cup that was scheduled to be jointly hosted by India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. The ICC is expected to decide on the issue in the next 48 hours.
"We will take the decision on the 2011 World Cup in the next 48 hrs," ICC chief executive Haroon Lorgat said.
As per initial reports the attack happened outside the Gaddafi stadium when the team was passing through the Liberty roundabout. At that moment 12 heavily armed gunmen, who were waiting there in vehicles, resorted to indiscriminate firing at the convoy and even fired rocket launchers – they narrowly missed the bus.
But, by then bullets had hit the bus injuring the players sitting by the side. Understanding the gravity of the situation, the driver of the bus, showing extreme courage in such a critical situation sped towards the relative safety of Gaddafi Stadium.
Seven policemen have lost their lives while two other are reportedly injured. Some of the slain policemen have been identified: Zafar Khan, Mudassar, Tipu Sultan and Tanvir Ahmed.
The terrorists who are thought to be 12 in number, had fled the scene of crime after a brief exchange of fire and efforts to trace them have proved futile despite assurances from the Pak establishment.
Pak media is now reporting that four people have been detained in Lahore in connection with the case.
There are also reports that two car bombs have been diffused and a huge cache of arms has been recovered from the vicinity of Pakistan’s biggest cricket stadium.
Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene, who was also in the bus, said that the players dived to the floor of the bus to take cover when the team bus came under heavy fire from terrorists
"The bus came under attack as we were driving to the stadium, the gunmen targeted the wheels of the bus first and then the bus," Jayawardene was quoted as saying in a report.
"We all dived to the floor to take cover. Players were been injured and also Paul Farbrace (a member of the support staff), but most of the injuries appear to be minor and were caused by debris," he said.
As per Pak media, four persons have been held from the Model Town area of Lahore on the suspicion of being part of the group that ambushed the players.
The arrests came after the Pakistan Police releasing the sketches of the assailants.
The authorities are suspecting it as a handiwork of one Pakistan’s many active terror groups. Punjab Governor, Salmaan Tahseer, while confirming the incident claimed that the attackers were highly trained and bore resemblance to the Mumbai terror attacks in the way it was executed.
Incidentally, media reports claimed that the police knew of a plan to attack the team and hence the route taken by the convoy today was kept a secret but it seems that the terrorists had better information.
Pakistan only invited the Sri Lanka team to tour after India's team pulled out with security concerns following the militant attacks on the Indian city of Mumbai in November.
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