Dimuth Karunaratne Declares Pakistan 200% Safe For Cricket

Yet again Pakistan managed to host a bilateral series successfully in home conditions, after staying away from hosting the international game for nine years. They hosted Sri Lanka for a two-match Test series, and successfully, managed to seal it with an excellent victory in the final match in Karachi.

The series held major significance as the host nation was deprived of international cricket for almost a decade. Pakistan had been forced to play their home series mostly in the United Arab Emirates since 2009 when terrorists attacked the bus carrying the Sri Lanka team in Lahore. Six policemen and a driver escorting match officials were killed.

Pakistan have done a really good job – Dimuth Karunaratne

Speaking during the post-series media conference, the Sri Lanka captain Dimuth Karunaratne called the security for the two-Test series “200 per cent” on Monday. The flamboyant opening batsman also vowed to come back again at any time. The statement from Dimuth Karunaratne is soothing to hear for Pakistan fans, as he was one of the few players, who opposed travelling to Pakistan earlier this year for the ODIs.

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“It was 200pc,”, Karunaratne said of the security. “Really good. They were like fathers for us. They kept talking to us, and they were right behind us every time. When we were going out to eat or something, they were there. We were feeling secure and safe here. They’ve done a really good job. Pakistan fans are really good — they kept supporting us.

“What I can say is that its really safe here and that all the other countries playing cricket can come and play Tests, T20s or one-dayers — it’s safe to play in Pakistan,” he added. 

Pakistan is far safer than India – Ehsan Mani

Meanwhile, the Pakistan Cricket Board Chairman Ehsan Mani stated that Pakistan is far more reliable than other countries in the world. He highlighted the mosque attack in Christchurch, assaults in England and Australia, which never denied playing cricket in the country. Ehsan Mani wants other countries to prove themselves before aiming the finger at Pakistan.

“Other teams will have to prove Pakistan is not safe. We think its safe, and we have shown the world it’s safe. What happened in Christchurch [with the mosque shootings while Bangladesh was nearby], the incidents that happen in Australia and England happen all around the world. India is in far greater turmoil from a security perspective than Pakistan is,” he added.

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Well, it would be interesting to see whether the other countries in the world will tour Pakistan or not in the future. For now, they are pushing Bangladesh to play a Pink Ball Test in their upcoming tour to Pakistan.