Sri Lanka depart for home after winning hearts of the nation

LAHORE: After playing a history-making T20I match in Lahore, Players and officials of Sri Lankan cricket team departed from Allama Iqbal International Airport in wee hours of Monday.

Though Pakistan lifted the T20I trophy beating the visitors in three-match series, Sri Lanka won the hearts of the millions of fans filled Gaddafi Stadium to watch their stars play under intense security in the provincial capital.

This is the first visit by a major cricketing nation since a 2009 attack on the Sri Lankan team.

Cricket-starved Pakistan celebrated the return of international cricket with a thumping 36-run win to clinch the final T20 match and the series against Sri Lanka at the Gaddafi stadium on Sunday. The hosting of the final T20I is a major step towards convincing international teams to begin touring Pakistan again.

Earlier, PCB chairman announced that Pakistan would host the six-nation Emerging Asia Cup in April next year.