T20I Series Against World XI Signifies That Cricketing Fraternity Will Not Let Pakistan Be Left Behind, Says Ramiz Raja
Sep 8, 2017 at 1:23 PM
Ramiz Raja was getting ready for Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium on the fateful day of 3 March 2009 when his driver heard a couple of blasts like sounds. Ramiz, who was set to commentate during the third day of the Test between Pakistan and Sri Lanka, ignored his driver’s claims at first but little did he know that those two blasts like sounds were about to pummel Pakistan cricket to one of its lowest points.
Those sounds came from the attack that took place on the Sri Lankan team bus which was en route to the stadium for the match. The deadly attack killed eight people and wounded seven Sri Lankan players and staff. Since then, except for Afghanistan and Zimbabwe, no international team has toured Pakistan citing security reasons.
“To have something you take for granted snatched away from you suddenly under tragic circumstances is a shock. For me that was cricket,” he wrote in his column for ICC.
“Karachi, Faisalabad, Sialkot, Multan, Rawalpindi, Peshawar, Quetta …… tremors of this event were felt throughout the country and left in its wake devastated players, forlorn fans and a collapsed administration.”
“With the passage of time, cricketing wilderness set in across the country. Stadia were empty, fans were deprived of the game they loved, players were frustrated, I was in anguish. The glue that held the nation together had come unstuck. Cricket was off the radar,” he added. “It affected the national psyche and perceptions about Pakistan as a safe country for cricket grew murky. But naturally, it gave way to an emotional and economic meltdown.”
However, international cricket can soon return to the cricket-obsessed country if everything goes as per the plans in the coming days. A World XI side is set to play a three-match T20I series against Pakistan in Lahore which will start next week, and a successful series will surely pave the way for more international matches.
Ramiz further wrote that the upcoming series holds a larger significance than just being an attempt to bring back international cricket to the country.
“So, when a World XI is announced to tour Pakistan, it is just not a cricket tour. Given the circumstance, it, can never be just that. It signifies that the cricketing fraternity will not let Pakistan be left behind,” he wrote.
The tour by the World XI will hopefully lead to resumption of a regular international cricket calendar in Pakistan. Credit must go to the players and the ICC for braving perceptions and possible personal pleadings by family and friends to look at the larger picture. The larger picture being – you need us, we need you. That is the only essential for cricket to survive,” added the former Pakistani cricketer.