Former Pakistan captain Inzamam-ul-Haq has finally opened up on the unfortunate incident on the Sri Lankan cricket team in 2009 a day before the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 starts. Inzamam-Ul-Haq labelled the incident as a “bad dream” as it brought Pakistan cricket to a new low.
The Sri Lankan team bus was brutally attacked by terrorists in 2009 during a Test match in Lahore. It brought Pakistan’s cricket to a standstill as the country was deprived of cricket at home for almost a decade.
Various teams refused to travel to Pakistan citing security issues which prompted the team to play its home games in UAE. Due to security concerns, the ODI World Cup 2011, which was scheduled to be co-hosted by Pakistan, was taken away by the ICC.
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“We were punished” – Inzamam-ul-Haq on terror attack on Sri Lankan team bus
While speaking ahead of the Champions Trophy 2025, Inzamam-ul-Haq opened up about the deadly terror attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team’s bus in the year 2009. Inzamam-ul-Haq labelled the incident as a bad dream and claimed that Pakistani cricket went backwards due to it.
“The events of 2009 feel like a bad dream. We were punished for 10 years. Our cricket went backwards,” Inzamam-ul-Haq was quoted as saying by The Indian Express.
Due to the dangerous terror attack in Lahore, Pakistan was deprived of international cricket at home. As a result, they were forced to play their home games in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) for almost a decade.
How did the incident happen?
The Sri Lankan team bus was attacked on March 3, 2009, during a Test match in Lahore. The incident took place while the team was going to the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore for the third day of the Test match.
However, the team bus was trapped around 9 am by the terrorists just outside the venue. About 12 gunmen surrounded the bus and attacked the players and the coaching staff from all the corners. The terrorists were armed with grenades, rocket launchers, and assault rifles.
They opened fire on the bus and even threw grenades at the players. The attack led to the death of six Pakistani security men and two civilians. However, the intelligence of the bus driver played a key role in saving all the players.
Star Sri Lankan players escape terror attack
The team bus included star Sri Lankan cricketers like Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene, Tillakaratne Dilshan, and Muthiah Muralidaran. Seven members of the Sri Lankan team and coaching staff were injured in the incident.
The toll of the deaths could have been much more but the rocket fired at the bus just went over the roof of the vehicle. Fortunately, the grenade that was thrown under the bus didn’t detonate. Former Sri Lankan captain Kumar Sangakkara later claimed that the bullet hit the seat where his head was just a second earlier.
The Sri Lankan was quickly flown back to their country after the attack while the rest of the Test match was suspended. The incident left the whole of Pakistan embarrassed and the cricketing world was in absolute shock.