Sri Lanka ready to play T20 in Pakistan

Abu Dhabi - SLC president Sumathipala will accompany the team to Lahore for the match on October 29

The Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) on Monday confirmed its commitment to play the third and final T20 match of the ongoing series in Pakistan.

Sri Lanka Cricket president Thilanga Sumathipala, who will accompany the team to Lahore, in a statement, extended his best wishes to Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Najam Sethi and his board on the occasion of the historic game, which is set to bring back bilateral cricket to Pakistan.

Sri Lanka will play at Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore on October 29. The first two T20 matches will be played in Abu Dhabi. The UAE has been Pakistan's home ground for a while now. It was in 2009 that the Lankan team bus was attacked in Pakistan. Two members of that team - Suranga Lakmal and Chamara Kapugedara, are part of the current squad playing in the UAE.

And it was months of uncertainty as many players were skeptical about travelling to Pakistan.

Sri Lankan Cricket has over the last two months held a thorough evaluation with the assistance of the governments of Lanka and Pakistan, the Pakistan Cricket Board and independent security experts.

Sri Lankan Cricket executive committee evaluated the reports along with the recommendation of the International Cricket Council, which had successfully conducted the three-match Independence Cup Tournament in Lahore by fielding a World XI Team. The ICC was fully satisfied with the stringent security measures in place in Pakistan.

Thus, the Sri Lankan Cricket executive committee unanimously decided to play the final T20 in Lahore.

The selections committee will pick a squad of 22 by Tuesday, and announce the final 15 on Friday. It will be interesting to see the names in the final squad. T20 skipper Upul Tharanga has reportedly is reluctant to the idea of playing in Pakistan.

ashwani@khaleejtimes.com