Sri Lanka calls Pakistan ‘true friend’

May 14th, 2009 KARACHI - Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) will not review the security arrangements in Sri Lanka ahead of the summer series between the two countries. The PCB chairman Ijaz Butt Thursday said Pakistan has complete faith in the security arrangements in Sri Lanka for the series in July-August.

February 22nd, 2009 KARACHI - Sri Lankan Sports Minister Gamini Lokuge Saturday said that Pakistan was a safe place to host sporting events. Loguke, who is on a visit here on the invitation of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), said the Sri Lankan government had trusted Pakistan as far as the security of the cricket team concerned.

February 21st, 2009 KARACHI - Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene was confident of his team's chances against Pakistan in the first cricket Test beginning here at the National Stadium from Saturday. Jayawardene, who has decided to step down as captain after the two-match series against Pakistan, said that Sri Lanka will try to maintain its good Test form and will go all out to win its first Test series in Pakistan.

February 14th, 2009 KARACHI - Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene Sunday said his team has put behind their home drubbing by India and are now focused to win the Test series against Pakistan that begins Feb 21. Hours after landing in Karachi for a two-match Test series, Jayawardene said that even though his team failed to click against India in the one-dayers, Test cricket would be a different ball game.

February 10th, 2009 COLOMBO - Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene has informed Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) that he would like to step down after the forthcoming tour of Pakistan. SLC chief-executive Duleep Mendis told IANS that Jayawardene expressed his desire to quit as captain after the Test series in Pakistan.

February 5th, 2009 KARACHI - Pakistan coach Intikhab Alam doesn't read much into Sri Lanka's recent mauling at the hands of India in their ongoing one-day series. He believes that Mahela Jayawardene's men will be tough to beat in a two-match Test series against Pakistan getting underway in Karachi later this month.

January 22nd, 2009 KARACHI - Former Pakistan captain Ramiz Raja was excluded from the commentary team for the ongoing one-day series between Pakistan and Sri Lanka on the instructions of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), a newspaper report said Friday. According to Urdu daily 'Jang', the PCB asked its broadcaster Ten Sports not to give the Pakistan-Sri Lanka series assignment to Ramiz.

January 15th, 2009 COLOMBO - Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) Friday called for bids for international television, radio and other sponsorship rights for the upcoming five one-day series against India, to begin later this month. 'Sri Lanka Cricket is pleased to invite offers from International TV Broadcasters for securing television, radio, mobile, internet and sponsorship rights for the forthcoming Indian Tour of Sri Lanka commencing on 28th January, 2009, and concluding on 10th February, 2009,' the SLC said in a statement Friday.

January 13th, 2009 KARACHI - The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Wednesday revised the itinerary of its home series against Sri Lanka, squeezing three One-day Internationals within four days on the request of the tourists. A PCB spokesman said that the Sri Lankans will stay in Pakistan for less than a week and will now play back-to-back One-dayers in Karachi on Jan 20 and 21 before featuring in the last game of the series on Jan 24 in Lahore.

January 12th, 2009 COLOMBO - India's cricket team will play five One-Day Internationals (ODI) and a Twenty20 match against Sri Lanka in Colombo in January-February. This was decided here Tuesday morning at a meeting between the officials of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and the officials of Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC).

January 7th, 2009 KARACHI - Pakistan's cricket officials Thursday heaved a sigh of relief when Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) confirmed that it will send its team to Pakistan twice this season to play One-day Internationals and Tests. Though the matches confirmed by SLC are lesser than the number of games asked by the Pakistan Cricket Board, the officials are happy that the proposed series has been confirmed.

January 4th, 2009 KARACHI - Pakistan still remains uncertain about the dates and number of matches it will host against Sri Lanka this season, as cricket board officials in that country are yet to finalise the schedule of the hurriedly-arranged tour. A senior Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) official said Monday they were yet to receive the series itinerary from the Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) that had promised to send the schedule Sunday.

December 29th, 2008 KARACHI - Pakistan is willing to pay Sri Lanka up to $1.5 million to play a hastly arranged series here in January-February. According to sources in the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), Pakistan is unlikely to generate any substantial profits from the series that was lined up after India decided to pull out of its tour of Pakistan over last month's terror attacks in Mumbai.

December 26th, 2008 KARACHI - Mohammad Yousuf said Saturday that Pakistan's home series against Sri Lanka will produce high quality cricket. While terming India's decision to cancel its cricket team's tour of Pakistan as a 'loss for cricket', Yousuf said Sri Lanka are a fitting replacement.

December 23rd, 2008 COLOMBO - Dismissing media reports, Sri Lanka sports minister Gamini Lokuge said Wednesday that the tour of Pakistan by the country's cricket team 'is almost on as scheduled'. Lokuge, who Tuesday dissolved the Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) interim administration led by former cricket captain Arjuna Ranatunga, told IANS that next month's tour of Pakistan 'is 90 percent on'.