After the initial agonising wait surrounding the delayed start following poor weather in the first India vs New Zealand ODI yesterday, the focus shifted very quickly to the events in Pakistan where the Sri Lankan players were attacked by terrorists.
After the initial agonising wait surrounding the delayed start following poor weather in the first India vs New Zealand ODI yesterday, the focus shifted very quickly to the events in Pakistan where the Sri Lankan players were attacked by terrorists.
Immediately there was some movement in the Sky Sports commentary box with former Indian captain Ravi Shastri getting on the phone to get updates in Pakistan.
Shastri kept his colleagues in the commentary team former New Zealand stars Martin Crowe, Ian Smith, Simon Doull, Mark Richardson and Stephen Fleming updated. Shastri was even quicker than some in the Indian media contingent on the news from Pakistan. Elsewhere, the lone Sri Lankan at the ground, former captain and current chief match-referee of the International Cricket Council (ICC) Ranjan Madugalle was in a state of shock as the news broke out. Madugalle spoke to the ICC referee for the series in Pakistan, Chris Broad, to know more about the attack.
Broad informed Madugalle that the match officials were also attacked but were safe."I believe the fourth umpire has been shot at. Chris informs me that they are flying out in the afternoon Pakistan time," said a shaken Madugalle as he was trying to source more information from Pakistan.
He kept zipping in and out of the referee's room as he answered calls from Broad.
For the Indian team, the news came as a shock because it could well have been them in Pakistan at the very same venue where the Lankans were attacked.
Indian manager Niranjan Shah asked the Indian media for updates and was immediately on the phone to New Zealand Cricket (NZC) CEO Justin Vaughan.
Shah on the job
Shah and the team's travel assistant Mayank Parikh immediately arranged for black armbands to be worn by the players.
The New Zealand team was not informed till the dinner break because the management did not want to distract the players.
However, one person who wore a dejected look quite contrary to her bubbly image was actress Priety Zinta.
The co-owner of Indian Premier League (IPL) side King's XI Punjab had Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara on the injured list. The smile on her face disappeared as she struggled to keep pace with Suresh Raina's pyrotechnics in the slog overs. Shastri by now had walked down from the commentary box to know more from Shah about the events. The duo exchanged notes with the Indian media.
In protest
But all eyes were on Priety who decided to wear a black armband as a mark of protest. She called it the "darkest day in cricket history".
But the last word as usual rested with manager Shah. When asked whether the attacks would cast a cloud on the 2011 World Cup to be jointly hosted by India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, he said: "There will be some effect on the World Cup. There is no doubt about it."
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