Arjuna Ranatunga, the former Chairman of Sri Lankan Cricket, a living legend in the annals of Lankan cricket, led his team to that pinnacle of fame, by winning the 1996 World Cup, beating Australia in the final in Lahore, Pakistan, thus putting Sri Lanka on the world cricketing map.

In recent times, Arjuna has come in for much criticism, over the IPL episode, where his detractors did curry favour with Sports Minister Gamini Lokuge who gave the Lankan captain and some senior members of the team the green light to sign up with the IPL, in their greed for money.

As a result, the tour of England which was arranged for later this year was called off. That will remain a dark chapter in the history of Sri Lanka cricket.

Money never came into the equation in the case of Arjuna and the great cricketers of the past. They played the game for the love of it and to bring honour to their motherland.

In the wake of the Mumbai disaster, India, opted to call off their tour to Pakistan this year, for reasons best known to them. against this backdrop, it was very creditable on the part of Arjuna, to come to the ‘rescue’ of Pakistan, when he responded positively to a request by the Pakistan Cricket Board to send a strong Sri Lankan team to Pakistan for a three match Test series, three ODIs and a Twenty-20 international, to fill the void created by India.

Pakistan has been a close friend of Sri Lanka, not only in the cricketing arena, but also in her fight against terrorism which has plagued the country for over 2 1/2 decades. This fine gesture has provided Pakistani cricket fans the opportunity to watch an absorbing contest between two cricketing giants in the sub-continent.

When Australia and the West Indies opted out of the World Cup matches to be staged here in 1996, due to the bomb blast in Colombo, in order to fill that void. Pakistan and India stood by us, sending a joint India-Pakistan team.

The Sri Lankans greatly appreciated this fine gesture by the Indian and Pakistan cricket boards.

Sri Lankan Cricket has shown their gratitude, by responding to the request of the Pakistan Cricket Board. That’s what true friendship is all about.