Nidahas Trophy 2018: BCCI gives security update after Sri Lanka declares emergency

Rohit Sharma is captaining the Indian side in the absence of Virat Kohli
Rohit Sharma is captaining the Indian side in the absence of Virat Kohli

A state of emergency has been declared in Sri Lanka for 10 days, amidst clashes between Buddhists and Muslims in the country, leading to growing concerns over the security of cricketers currently in the island nation to play the Nidahas Trophy 2018.

"At a special cabinet meeting, it was decided to declare a state of emergency for 10 days to prevent the spread of communal riots to other parts of the country,", Dayasiri Jayasekara, Sri Lanka's Minister of Sport, told Reuters.

"It was also decided to take stern action against people who are instigating violence through Facebook," he added.

Tension had been mounting between the two communities for over a year, with Kandy recently becoming the epicenter of enraged fights which eventually led to a curfew in the city.

The BCCI, however, has stated that the situation is completely normal in Colombo, and the tri-series will go ahead as per schedule, with the opener set to be held today.

The BCCI media manager told reporters in Colombo: “The situation in picture is Kandy and not Colombo. This is to notify everyone that after talking to concerned security personnel, we have understood that the situation is completely normal in Colombo.”

The Indian team, barring a few prominent names such as Virat Kohli and MS Dhoni, is in Sri Lanka for the T20I tri-series, with Bangladesh being the third participant. All games are scheduled to take place at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo, a good 130 kilometers away from Kandy, where a curfew has been imposed.

The tournament begins with the first game between India and Sri Lanka on Tuesday. Rohit Sharma will be captaining the Indian side in the absence of a rested Virat Kohli, with a number of youngsters making up the numbers in the team.

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Edited by Aadya Sharma