Sri Lanka cricket says received terror attack warning ahead of Pakistan tour

PTI, Sep 12, 2019, 11:04 AM IST

Colombo: Sri Lanka’s cricket board said Wednesday it had received warnings its national team could be the target of a terror attack during an upcoming tour of Pakistan.

The board said the Sri Lankan Prime Minister’s Office had advised it to “reassess the situation” after it received “reliable information of a possible terrorist threat” against the national squad ahead of the six-match limited-overs tour.

It stopped short of calling off the tour, but said a reassessment of the security situation would be sought from Sri Lankan government authorities.

The Sri Lanka team was the victim of a militant attack during a Test match in Pakistan’s Lahore in March 2009. Six Sri Lankan players were injured when gunmen attacked their bus while six Pakistan policemen and two civilians were killed.

Ten senior players have already opted out of the upcoming tour citing security concerns.

The statement from Sri Lanka Cricket came a short while after the board announced two squads for the three One-Day Internationals and the three T20 matches starting September 27.

Since the 2009 attack, a majority of international teams have refused to tour the South Asian country.