The cricket world has reacted with shock and anger to the savage attack on the Sri Lankan team in Pakistan, warning of dire consequences for the game in that country.
International Cricket Council chief executive Haroon Lorgat said in a statement, ''We note with dismay and regret the events ... in Lahore and we condemn this attack without reservation.
''It is a source of great sadness that there have been a number of fatalities in this attack and it is also very upsetting for the wider cricket family that some of the Sri Lanka players and one match official have been injured in this attack.''
Pakistani air force helicopters evacuated the Sri Lankan cricket team, including two players on stretchers, from Lahore's Gaddafi Stadium, after the ambush.
Sri Lanka President Mahinda Rajapakse ordered Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama to fly to Pakistan to oversee the evacuation.
Sixteen members of the touring party ran towards the military aircraft on the pitch under guard of security officials.
Injured players Thilan Samaraweera and Tharanga Paranavithana were carried on stretchers to a second helicopter, which also evacuated Sri Lankan captain Mahela Jayawardene and manager Brenden Kurrupu.
Sri Lanka then chartered a plane to evacuate the team from Lahore.
Officials said they were trying to fly the 25-member team through either Abu Dhabi or Dubai.
Cricket-obsessed Sri Lanka reeled in shock at the attack.
Sri Lankan officials declined to speculate on who may have been behind the attack, amid suggestions that its own rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam may have been involved. ''We are uncertain as to who perpetrated this attack,'' Foreign Secretary Palitha Kohona said.
''I have heard the [Tigers] mentioned on the airwaves. There is considerable speculation, but we will await the outcome of the investigation before we comment,'' he said. ''We are reassured that Pakistan authorities are conducting a probe to arrest the assailants and bring them to justice.''
The Sri Lankan military is on the verge of crushing the Tigers, who have been fighting a longstanding insurgency for an independent Tamil homeland in the north-east of the island.
The head of the Sri Lanka Cricketers' Association, Graeme Labrooy, said the shooting was bound to deter other Test-playing nations from touring Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
''Other countries will think twice before touring here or Pakistan, because of the terrorism problem,'' he said.
Up to 12 gunmen attacked the team's convoy near the Gaddafi Stadium with rockets, hand grenades and automatic weapons, triggering a 25-minute gunfight with security forces.
Cricket powerhouse India, which pulled out of an anticipated tour to Pakistan this year due to simmering political tensions, said it was ''shocked'' and highlighted the lack of security that blighted its neighbour.
Board of Control for Cricket in India secretary N Srinivasan said, ''What has happened is very shocking indeed.
''We have been saying that there was a lack of security and safety in Pakistan. But this is not the time to give statements on that. At the moment our concerns are only for the Sri Lankan players.''
India called off its tour in December in the wake of the deadly terrorist attacks in Mumbai, which it blamed on Pakistan-based militants. It was only then that Sri Lanka was approached and agreed to fill the void.
Former England cricketer Dominic Cork, who was in Lahore commentating on Sri Lanka's now abandoned second Test against Pakistan, said no more international cricket should be played in the country. ''I won't be coming back here while I'm living, there is no chance. I don't think international cricket should return to this country,'' Cork, a fast-medium bowler who played 37 Tests for England, said. AFP
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