Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara said that while life for his side would not be the same after the attack on their team bus in Pakistan, it would not stop them from playing international cricket.
Sangakkara’s men have arrived in England for the ICC World Twenty20 after a particularly torrid few months.
In March, their bus was attacked with bullets and grenades in Lahore as they travelled to the Gadaffi Stadium for a Test against Pakistan in an incident that saw several players, including Sangakkara hurt, and eight Pakistanis killed.
PHOTO: AP
Their arrival in England was overshadowed by British newspaper reports of Sri Lankan government “war crimes” against the separatist Tamil Tigers, which may have led to the cancelation of a trip to the Oxford Union.
“It was funny getting back on a bus from the airport to go to hotel when we arrived in England,” Sangakkara explained to reporters on Sunday.
“After Lahore, we went through a terrible time but what we’ve realized is that life goes on,” he said. “We’ve got to play cricket, cricket for us means normalcy.”
Sangakkara stressed the role that cricket plays in his country’s culture.
“Cricket in Sri Lanka has been that one unifying force over the years,” he said. “It’s been the passion of the entire country, cricket transcends religion, race and politics.”
“I think that’s the greatest thing we represent. As a team we are representative of all the ethnicities and religions that are there in Sri Lanka and we get on fine,” Sangakkara said.
Sangakkara said there was a straightforward reason why the Oxford Union visit had been called off.
“Since then the Oxford arrangements were not made known to our security team well enough in advance that was why it was canceled,” he said.
Taiwan’s top women’s badminton doubles duo, Hsieh Pei-shan (謝沛珊) and Hung En-tzu (洪恩慈), achieved a straight-sets victory over Japan’s Kaho Osawa and Mayui Tanabe at the Badminton World Federation (BWF) Super 300 Macau Open on Sunday. The Taiwanese pair won the final 21-18, 21-12, marking the duo’s second title this year after their win at the BWF Super 300 Taipei Open in May. The match on Sunday was their first encounter with the Japanese duo, ranked No. 63 in the world. Hsieh and Hung, ranked No. 12, began the opening game well. Hung, who plays left-handed, performed strongly at both the net and the
Canadian teenager Victoria Mboko upset top-seeded Coco Gauff 6-1, 6-4 on Saturday night to reach the National Bank Open quarter-finals. “Your support was incredible,” Mboko told the crowd in French after a chorus of “Ole, Ole, Ole” chants echoed around the venue. “I’m really happy to win today ... It’s incredible. I’m so happy to beat such a great champion.” Gauff dropped to 2-3 since winning the French Open. She followed the major victory with opening losses in Berlin and Wimbledon, then overcame double-fault problems to win two three-set matches in Montreal. Gauff had five double-faults on Saturday after having 23 in
Formula 1 champion Max Verstappen on Thursday said that he is staying with the Red Bull team next year, ending months of speculation over his future. “Some people just like to stir the pot, some people just like to create drama, but, for me, it’s always been quite clear, and also for next year,” the four-time champion said ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix. “I’m discussing with the team already the plans — the things that we want to change for next year, so that means that I’m also staying with the team for next year,” he said. Verstappen has a contract with
Alex Michelsen on Thursday rallied for a 3-6, 7-6 (7/4), 6-4 upset victory over third-seeded Lorenzo Musetti in the men’s singles, converting his seventh match point to reach the fourth round of the Canadian Open. Michelsen reached the last 16 of a Masters 1000 for the first time with his second win over a top-10 player in eight attempts. The 20-year-old American survived nearly 50 unforced errors and converted just two of nine break chances, but it was enough to vanquish Italy’s Musetti, a two-time Grand Slam semi-finalist ranked 10th in the world. “It feels really good,” the 26th-ranked Michelsen said. “I’ve put
RSS