Ten Sri Lanka players opt out of tour of Pakistan due to security concerns
- Published
Pakistan last played Sri Lanka in a Test series in the United Arab Emirates in 2017
Ten Sri Lanka players, including captain Dimuth Karunaratne, Lasith Malinga and Angelo Mathews, have opted out of their limited-overs tour of Pakistan because of security concerns.
The team are due to play three one-day internationals and three Twenty20 matches from 27 September to 9 October.
Players were allowed to decide whether to take part after a security briefing.
Pakistan have not hosted a Test on home soil since gunmen attacked Sri Lanka's team bus in Lahore in 2009.
The attack left two civilians and six security personnel dead, while six players were injured.
"The meeting was aimed at informing the players about the security arrangements during the forthcoming tour and also to find out their decision (either taking part or not) before the selection of squads for the ODI and T20I series," a Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) statement said.
Niroshan Dickwella, Kusal Perera, Dhananjaya de Silva, Thisara Perera, Akila Dhananjaya, Suranga Lakmal and Dinesh Chandimal joined ODI captain Karunaratne, T20 skipper Malinga and former captain Mathews in choosing not to be part of the tour.
The limited-overs leg of the series had already been brought forward in August following an agreement between the SLC and Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), with two Tests pushed back, having originally been set to take place in October.