The context of playing Pakistan has undergone several changes where the last few years are concerned. Truth be told, one could quiz an existing international cricketer from any nation on when was the last time that his country traveled to Pakistan to appear in a bi-lateral series and what one may offer could be blank looks. The reason is quite simple in reality. There haven’t been any tours ‘to’ Pakistan even as one of the most talented sub-continental sides continues to globetrot in a bid to contest bi-lateral series everywhere where there is cricket. So recently when the tour of Sri Lanka to Pakistan was announced, there had to be an interesting parallel narrative to it. And so it boiled down to something like this. Why are few Sri Lankan players not interested to tour Pakistan?
The trauma of 2009 still haunts Sri Lanka’s memory
If one were to rewind the clocks back to the events that took place in 2009 at Lahore, in Pakistan then they might still reverberate rather tensely in the corridors of Sri Lankan cricket.
It was a decade back in time that Sri Lankan cricketers, part of a large convoy, were fired upon, the bus carrying the entire touring contingent coming under an attack by members of the terror outfit Lashkar-e-Jhangvi.
In the remorseful episode, 6 members of Sri Lanka’s cricket team were injured. Instantly, what should have been a usual, undramatic cricketing series between two South Asian cricket-loving nations turned into a searing inferno blazed by controversy and regret.
Perhaps the haunting memory of the events back then still cause some trouble and could this be the reason that are some Sri Lankan players not interested to tour Pakistan?
Sri Lankan players not interested to tour Pakistan where the current developments offer an understanding of what’s really happening then it is believed that existing members of the Sri Lankan squad- such as- Niroshan Dickwella and all-rounder Thisara Perera are not interested in traveling to Pakistan.
The tour involves a limited-overs series, including 3 ODIs and 3 T20s
In addition to the above talents, there are some other active cricketers, not named yet, that are willing to give the tour a miss. Should that happen, then it may even boil down to Sri Lanka sending a team that may miss its usual star players from the current make, thus, in effect, producing a team that’s of an A-level.
Due to contractual disputes in the past- in regions such as the Caribbean– we have already seen the kind of teams that the West Indies have fielded in important ‘away tours’, whether to a South Africa or to some other region.
When Pakistan thanked the West Indies
In fact, interestingly, the only team which tried to improve the narrative regarding touring Pakistan, a prospect that often attracts intense scrutiny from various boards was the West Indies team of 2018.
Cheered by local fans and shown respectful placards that smiled in appreciation, “thank you for coming to Pakistan, West Indies,” the side led by Jason Mohammad, albeit absent of the usual ensemble of T20 stars played and lost every T20 it played in Karachi’s National Stadium. Barring regular folks like Rayad Emrit and Chadwick Walton, there weren’t many regular faces on a team whose composition could be likened to a B-side.
Still, importantly international cricket returned to Pakistan after keeping a sport-loving nation deprived of its thrill and joy after a painful sabbatical of 10 years.
Will the Tour go ahead as expected?
Whilst surely when playing any sport what should form number one priority is the safety of the athletes, what one can’t help but debate with reason minus prejudice is whether the Sri Lankan cricketers should avoid the tour basis a past episode that occurred under an erratic government?