3rd of http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Sri-Lanka-c758 at Lahore. On their way to the ground from hotel,
Sri Lankan cricket team’s convoy was attacked by the terrorists at the Liberty roundabout which is only about half a kilometer away from Qaddafi Stadium Lahore where the test match was being played. Along with the Sri Lankan team, there was a minibus as well
in which the officials of the match were travelling.
There has been a lot of highlight given to the Sri Lankan cricketers, especially Thilan Samaraweera who was badly injured in that incident. But amongst all of them, there has been an unsung hero of Pakistan and international cricket. Ahsan Raza was the 4th
umpire in that test match and was starting his career as an international umpire in that particular series. He sustained a bullet wound as he was shot in the back and was immediately taken to the hospital where he was in a critical position for quite some
time. That was the last thing he could have asked for at such an early stage of his career.
Eighty stitches were inserted into Raza’s body and he was not able to use one of his lungs as it was punctured by the bullet. The doctors advised Raza to take complete rest and told him that it would take him eighteen months to recover completely. An ordinary
person’s morale would have been completely shattered after all this but such was Raza’s will to stand up on his feet again that he supervised a veteran cricket match just 2 and a half months after the incident. His financial situation might have played a part
in his early come back but he showed immense courage and mental strength to recover from that horror morning.
Raza made an international return in the Asia Cup 2010 and then officiated in the 2nd T20 between Pakistan and http://www.senore.com/Cricket/South-Africa-c757 at Abu Dhabi where
he was the on-field umpire for the 1st time at the highest stage of the game. This itself is a great achievement in itself and indeed is a heroic effort by http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Ahsan-Raza-c42378.
Ahsan, who is also known as ‘Sunny’ was a wicket-keeper in his playing days and used to bat in the lower order, played 1st class cricket for several years representing Habib Bank, Sargodha and Lahore. He has also played league cricket in England
for a number of years. He took umpiring as a career once he left playing professional cricket and because of his skill and knowledge about cricket, rapidly made it to the international arena. He is only 36 at the moment and definitely has a bright future in
front of him. Raza hopes that in future he is known for his umpiring abilities rather than the tragedy he went through on March 3rd, 2009.
Ahsan Raza’s ideal is another Pakistani umpire, Aleem Dar, who belongs to the same club in which Raza played, P&T Gymkhana. Aleem Dar has made his country proud by achieving the ICC Best Umpire’s award for two consecutive years. Ahsan Raza wishes to follow
Dar’s footsteps as the leading umpire in the world. This is very much possible considering the sort of mental strength and willpower he has shown during the short length of his career. Whether on not he succeeds as an international umpire, he will be remembered
all over the world as an unsung hero in the terrorist attack on the Sri Lankan team.
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