Terrorists destroy cricket in Pakistan

Sad:

At least six players in the Sri Lankan national cricket team were hurt when masked gunmen fired on the team bus in Lahore while being driven to the Gaddafi stadium on Tuesday.

Six Pakistani policemen and two civilians were killed when 12 masked gunmen on rickshaws attacked with guns, grenades and rockets.

The team bus came under fire as the players headed to the stadium for the third day of the second Test against Pakistan.

Thilan Samaraweera was one of those hurt along with Tharanga Paranavitana. Both are in hospital. Samaraweera has a bullet wound to his thigh. Paranavitana has a gash to his chest from shrapnel.

Those wounded with minor shrapnel injuries were skipper Mahela Jayawardene, Kumar Sangakkara, Chaminda Vaas and Ajantha Mendis.

Samaweera scored back-to-back double centuries in this series, 214 yesterday and 231 in the first Test in Karachi last week.

Cricket always seemed immune from such attacks, but this is the first time members of a national team were attacked and injured while touring a foreign country.

Pakistan has increasingly become a problematic place to play cricket. Some international teams (like Australia) have not toured Pakistan since 1998 because of terrorist threats.

But the hidden victim of this attack is Pakistani cricket. After this attack, no international side will feel safe touring the nation for a long time - perhaps more than a decade. This is a terrible state of affairs because Pakistan produces some great players and the team is always competitive. Without international tours, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) will be unable to gain enough cash to keep itself going, not least spreading the wealth at club level for player development.

Pakistan will be able to send its national team to other countries to play, of course, but without a home series, cricket in Pakistan will suffer mightily. This is a sad day for cricket in Pakistan.