Real close shave for Ajantha Mendis | Sri lankan Team attacked in Pak

Ajantha Mendis, who made such a splash on his Sri Lanka debut last year and is a Shah Rukh Khan Knight, had a much closer escape than reported in the hours immediately after Tuesday morning’s terror strike in Lahore.

“The doctors haven’t confirmed, but it’s feared that a bullet grazed the right side of Ajantha’s head… It’s not that he was struck by shrapnel only,” Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) chief executive Duleep Mendis told.

Speaking from Colombo on Wednesday evening, Mendis added: “Ajantha’s in hospital, as are four others… There’s some concern over (Thilan) Samaraweera, who took bullets in his leg and has undergone surgery, but the others should be discharged in a couple of days…”

Ajantha, Samaraweera, captain-in-waiting Kumar Sangakkara, Tharanga Paranavitana and assistant coach Paul Farbrace have all been admitted to the Nawaloka Hospital in Colombo, Sri Lanka’s premier medical institution.

While Mendis didn’t say that Ajantha too had been operated upon, a spokesman for the hospital conveyed that in as many words.

“I don’t have details, but Ajantha has also undergone surgery… His wound necessitated that,” a gentleman who identified himself as being from the “administrative side,” said around 10 pm.

Ajantha, an armyman, is days away from his 24th birthday.

Meanwhile, according to Mendis, SLC intends “doing something” for the team bus driver, Mohammad Khalil, who kept calm and drove the vehicle to safety.

From Sangakkara to Muttiah Muralidharan, everybody has praised Khalil for his courage and presence of mind.

“We’ll be doing something for the driver… We’re very appreciative of the role he played… Right now, though, our priority is to see that the injured are quickly back to good health,” Mendis pointed out.

Mendis, a former captain, too had gone to Lahore on the special flight which brought the Mahela back home.

The Sri Lanka cricketers don’t have international commitments till the World T20 meet in England, which begins on June 5.

So, there’s time to recover from the wounds, both physical and emotional.

Source : The Telegraph.