After playing the first ODI on the Pakistan tour, the Sri Lankan cricket team had refused to play the second match. Actually, after the bomb blast in Islamabad, the players were scared, they wanted to return home. But now the second ODI is being played, in which Pakistan won the toss and decided to bowl first.
Pakistan vs Sri Lanka 2nd ODI was to be played on 13 November, but it had to be rescheduled. Earlier there was news that after the bomb blast in Islamabad, Sri Lankan players are scared and they no longer want to play in Pakistan. Even in the first ODI, all the players were brought to the stadium under tight security.
Why was the Sri Lankan team ready to play?
If the Sri Lankan team had left the tour of Pakistan midway and returned, Pakistan would have been disgraced. Let us tell you that a few years ago the New Zealand team also left the series midway after the terrorist threat in Pakistan. Talks were going on between Sri Lanka Cricket and PCB, PCB was trying to assure them that the team would be kept under complete security.
After the Islamabad bomb blast, Pakistan Cricket Board Chairman and Pakistan Home Minister Mohsin Naqvi announced that the Sri Lankan team will be provided state level security. He had told that along with the police, now the army and rangers will also take care of the security of the visiting team.
Naqvi met the players of Pakistan and Sri Lanka, after which while talking to the media he said that the Sri Lankan government and the board have decided to continue the series. He had confirmed that after the blast in Islamabad, some Sri Lankan players wanted to return home.
Sri Lankan cricketers getting the full VVIP protocol in Pakistan 🙏✅
From the stadium to the hotel — next level hospitality! pic.twitter.com/QJCe2ACXqT— Senu_Kavi (@KaviSenu) November 13, 2025
Field Marshal spoke to Sri Lankan Defense Minister
Mohsin Naqvi had said, “Continuous talks between the officials of Pakistan and Sri Lanka have yielded positive results. The Field Marshal himself has spoken to the Defense Minister and Secretary of Sri Lanka. I am thankful to the players that they have shown great bravery by deciding to stay in Pakistan. I myself have held long talks with the Sri Lankan players to assure them that their security is the responsibility of the Government of Pakistan.”
