Bangladesh's cricket players had a narrow escape when a gunman killed 49 people and wounded several others during Friday players at two mosques in Christchurch. The Bangladeshi cricketers were about to reach for prayers at one of the mosques when a man opened fire but all members of the team were safe and accounted for.
Bangladesh were in Christchurch for the third and the final Test against New Zealand. The Black Caps won the first two Tests in Hamilton and Wellington and the focus was on inflicting a whitewash on the visitors.
New Zealand won the first Test in Hamilton by an innings and 52 runs and the second in Wellington by an innings and 12 runs. Before that, New Zealand blanked Bangladesh 3-0 in an ODI series.
The tour had to be called off after the terror attack on the two mosques.
"We believe that 40 people have lost their lives in this act of extreme violence," New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern. "It is clear that this can now only be described as a terrorist attack."
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An eyewitness narrates the entire shootout that took place at the mosques in New Zealand. @Geeta_Mohan describes about the current situations in that area.
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New Zealand has been known to be one of the most peaceful countries in the world and obviously an attack like that shocked the entire world. The cricket fraternity reacted in horror after a close shave for the Bangladesh players.
Unfortunately, this was not the first time a major cricket tour had been affected by terror attacks.
2008: England return home after Mumbai terror attacks
November 26, 2008: India and England were locked in battle in the fifth ODI the series. It was new India under MS Dhoni. They had won the CB Series in Australia earlier that year and were all over England in the ODI series. Chasing 271, Virender Sehwag smashed a 73-ball 91 while Sachin Tendulkar, MS Dhon iand Suresh Raina scored enterprising half-centuries. By the end of the night, India had a 5-0 lead against a very strong England team.
But the celebrations were short lived as news trickled in of the ghastly terror attack in Mumbai. Pakistan-backed terrorists had attacked some of the most iconic sites in Mumbai. Indian security forces responded heroically but several innocent lives were lost.
England returned home immediately after but returned to India to play a Test series. The second Test, which was scheduled to be held in Mumbai, was shifted to Chennai. Sachin Tendulkar played one of his most memorable Test knocks as India chased down a record total against England. In an emotional post-match presentation ceremony, Tendulkar dedicated his knock and the win to victims of the 26/11 terror attack.
2009: Terrorists fire at Sri Lankan team bus in Lahore
March 3, 2009: The Sri Lankan team was on its way to the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore when their convoy came under attack from militants armed with RPGs, hand grenades and guns. Seven people lost their lives in the attack and seven members of the Sri Lankan team were injured. The image of Ajantha Mendis arriving at Colombo airport with a bandage on his head the next day haunted the entire cricket fratenity.
The two match series ended in a 0-0 draw but the repercussions for Pakistan cricket were huge.
Pakistan have since played their home matches in the United Arab Emirates. The Pakistan Super League is mostly played in the Middle East. In 2018, both the Eliminators and final were played in Pakistan. This year, four group matches, the qualifier, Eliminators and final were scheduled to be played in Pakistan.
International cricket did return briefly to Pakistan when Zimbabwe toured the country for a two-match T20I series. However, 10 years after that horrific incident, international teams are still reluctant to travel to Pakistan.
Australia will play Pakistan in a five-match series in UAE.
November 2008. March 2009. March 2019. On Friday, the Bangladesh players came frighteningly close to one of the mosques when the gunman opened fire. Luckily, they were safely back in their hotel and all members of the team were declared to be safe.