JEDDAH, 12 March 2004 — Saudi Arabia too is in the grip of cricket fever like the whole of the Indian Subcontinent.

As the Pakistan-India series begins with the first of five One-Day Internationals, (ODI) tomorrow, it’s cricket in the minds of subcontinent expats.

Cashing in on the cricket series after a gap of 15 years, are hotels, restaurants and even airline and other offices that have made elaborate arrangements for sports lovers to watch the five ODIs and three Tests in the next 40 days.

The Pakistani Embassy in Riyadh and Consulate General in Jeddah have been issuing “cricket visas” to expats interested in watching the Pakistan-India series. The visa holds good for the cities that host the ODIs and Tests. Indian expats constitute a large number of visa seekers from various nationalities. Saudis, who are extended same-day visa service, are also among them.

The Consulate General of India expects a number of cricket lovers to see the matches on its TV screens. “We usually have a large number of members of the community viewing cricket, and we expect the turnout to be bigger this time,” Consul General Syed Akbaruddin said.

Salt N’ Pepper

Salt N’ Pepper, a restaurant and café located at Prince Majed Street in Aziziah district, has displayed Arab News banners along side a 53 inch TV screen in cooperation with Sony to entertain cricket lovers during the current Pakistan-India series. “We’ve made arrangements for 250 seats,” Restaurant Manager Saquib Fraz Khan said. The restaurant presents an ambience that will attract cricket lovers. Varieties of food and drinks will be on offer at a 15 percent discount during the matches, said Khan, 29, a Lahore graduate who spent five years in F&B in a five-star hotel back home before joining the restaurant here. “Different menus will be on offer during the 40-day cricket series,” he said, adding that the restaurant specializes in Indian, Pakistani, Arabic, Chinese and Continental dishes, aside from Lebanese BBQ. The success of the restaurant, which was established in October 2002, has prompted the management to launch its branch in Jeddah shortly, followed by another in Riyadh.

Kababish Restaurant

Kababish Restaurant is another food outlet that is displaying Arab News banners alongside its TV screen. The restaurant, established in 1982 and located at Prince Majed Street, expects 250 viewers to enjoy the series. “If we get more guests, we’ll accommodate them in our spacious garden,” Syed Anwer Saeed, manager at the restaurant, said. The restaurant will offer its viewers a standard lunch costing SR10 that will include different menus on match days. There is also a move to offer a PIA return ticket to Karachi in a draw to be held after the 5th ODI, said Saeed, 45, who played cricket with Pakistani greats like Javed Miandad, Sikander Bakht, Haroon Rasheed and Mohsin Hassan Khan. He came here in 1977-78 and played cricket for 10 years. The restaurant had made similar arrangements for cricket lovers during the last two World Cup matches.

PIA

PIA, which has stepped in with the slogan “Bringing neighbors together,” calls it a ‘cricket festival’ and has wished success to the Pakistan Cricket Team in its current series on home grounds. The airline has invited people to watch the ODI action live on March 13, 16, 19, 21 and 23 at its offices in Jeddah, Riyadh, Dammam, Makkah and Madinah. The airline has made arrangements to serve refreshments. Cricket lovers can also call the PIA sportsline to know match scores on (02) 643-9453 or 056-486-306. Earlier in January, the airline resumed its services from Pakistan to destinations in the Asian Subcontinent that include Bombay, Delhi, Dhaka, Colombo and Katmandu.

Hotels and Homes

Aside from the Trident hotels, a number of other starred hotels across the Kingdom have set up large TV screens to attract cricket lovers with special menus. A number of individuals have also set up home theaters to view the matches with relatives and friends. TV and antenna dealers say there has been a dramatic increase in their turnover. Some of those with small TVs are going in for sets with large screen.

Pehla Plus

Arab Digital Distribution (ADD) says there has been a last minute rush for Pehla Plus that is offering the clash of the Asian giants live from tomorrow up to April 17 along with ARY Digital Network and E-Vision.

The series comprising five One-Day International (ODI) and three Test matches will be telecast live and exclusive on ADD, described as the largest pay TV platform management company in the Middle East, North Africa and Europe. “This is available to Pehla and ePehla subscribers,” says Ajit John Peter, a spokesman for Pehla.

Pehla — Premium Asian entertainment Television is synonymous with year-round cricket and continues to bring cricketing action this year, premier championships like the ICC trophy in England and Australia’s tour of India followed by the Springbok tour of India.

The India-Pakistan series has raised a great deal of excitement among cricket fans. Everyone wants to catch the action ball-by-ball. “So there has been a rush for new subscriptions. As the premier platform for Asians, Pehla stands for A-Z of cricket and continues to showcase live and exclusive cricketing action from around the world,” he said.

What has added to the excitement is that the two Asian giants are facing each other in a home series after a gap of 15 years. “This is the third series we telecast, following the Pakistan vs Bangladesh and Pakistan vs South Africa series.”

Eastern Province

In Dammam, Asad Mir, a Pakistani who works for an airline, said he bought SR5,000 worth of equipment about 15 days ago and has turned his drawing room into a 70 mm theater. “I saved money for two months,” said Mir who has invited an Indian family to watch the match. “It will be fun to watch the series with an Indian.” He plans to invite all his friends to Madina Restaurant to view the third ODI, which is on a Friday. 

A Pakistani said that he had installed a central satellite system like in housing compounds in his apartment. “It cost me close to SR 20,000. I hope to recover the cost by charging a small fee to those who want to view the series.”

Gabe, an Indian who works for a hotel, is excited like other cricket lovers. “I bought a subscription to a satellite two months earlier. We have multiple shifts so I’m lucky. I plan to work in the evening shift so that I see matches live. Some of my friends will join me to see the action live. We will order mandi or khapsa and have a good time.”

Rafeya, a Pakistani housewife said she was really glad that the matches were in the morning when all the kids would be in school. “I’m going to cook lunch right after Fajr, so that I have plenty of time to watch the match.”

Some restaurants and schools in the Eastern Province have upgraded their TV screening to show the matches.

Following is the schedule of matches between India and Pakistan:

1st ODI in Karachi, March 13; 2nd ODI in Rawalpindi. March 16; 3rd ODI in Peshawar, March 19; 4th ODI in Lahore, March 21; 5th ODI in Lahore, March 24; 1st Test in Multan, March 28-April 1; 2nd Test in Lahore April 5-9; 3rd Test in Rawalpindi, April 13-17.

(Additional input from Sameen Tahir-Khan in Dammam)