Bayliss warns of early retirements in wake of Lahore attack

Melbourne, April 21: Sri Lankan cricket coach Trevor Bayliss has warned that players may opt for premature retirements if they are asked to tour troubled countries in the aftermath of the Lahore terror attack on his team in March.

Bayliss was in the Lankan team bus when it was ambushed by heavily armed terrorists in Lahore on March 3, leaving six players injured.

And Bayliss said a fallout of the attack would be the fear of more such incidents among players, who would consider giving up the game altogether instead of risking their lives.

"I am sure that will be the case," he told a news agency.

"If we happen to have a tour to a certain country and there is a little bit of a threat I am sure that some of those players will have that in the back of their minds," he said.

The 46-year-old coach said the players would be fighting back strong emotions the next time they board the team bus for a venue.

"Obviously it is hard to know how everyone will react the first time we jump back in the bus on the way to the ground somewhere. But at this stage everyone seems to be handling it pretty well," he said.

The Sri Lankan squad underwent counseling after the attacks and Bayliss said he hoped tour to other sub-continental nations like India and Bangladesh are not affected by the Lahore attack.

"There is a lot of water under the bridge until then and I am sure the correct steps will be made to make sure that everything is fine and that if not, we might not go," he said.

"I would not mind if we just left it alone and just got on with it. I don`t think about it all that often, it is more when someone asks me about it," he added.

Bureau Report