Yesterday I broke a vow I made to myself — not to get carried away by the cricket hype of the Indo-Pak series.
For days I watched, on CNN, the BBC and some Arabic channels too, the buildup to the Indian tour.
A couple of weeks ago there were speculations that the trip might not go through for security concerns. As a passionate lover of the game I am always thrilled at watching Australia-England encounters. But it is an even bigger treat to watch an India-Pakistan match. The love of cricket runs deeply among these people. Although introduced by the British, their interest has overtaken that of the mother country by leaps and bounds.
While Australia and England are only rivals on the pitch, the divisions between the two subcontinental neighbors run far deeper.
Wars, tensions and unnecessary enmity created by vested interests on both sides of the border have caused such a national psychosis that even a simple game can turn into warfare. Media hype, jingoistic utterances from politicians and a host of other elements kept the tour in the balance till the last moment.
However, saner counsel prevailed and the Indians arrived to a tumultuous welcome. In Karachi — deprived of a Test match because of security concerns — a One Day match was played.
And this is where I broke my vow. Sitting at home, nursing cough syrup and gulping down Advil tablets, I had decided to give it a rest.
But neither my temperature nor my puffy eyes could stop my hands groping for the remote.
And as I switched on the set, Tendulkar was out, Ganguly and Dravid were batting and the Indians were going for the big kill. What struck me apart from the pretty faces in the crowd was that the good shots won rounds of applause from everyone.
When the Indian innings ended I decided to have a brief respite, but as for Lady Macbeth — or was it Hamlet — sleep was not to come.
Entertained by a Youhana-Inzamam partnership and some lusty shots by the middle order Pakistan batsmen, I really thought the Pakistanis were going to win.
But determined effort by the Indians, who never gave up, with the expressionless Ganguly staring at a boundary, arms folded, made me realize that the game would only be decided on the last ball.
And it was. That superb catch by Muhammad Kaif wrapped up the day’s events.
But what was more pleasurable than that catch was the cheering by the Pakistan crowd who gave Ganguly and his men a standing ovation as they headed back to the pavilion.
No insults, no chants, no slogans. Just clapping and cheering the winning side.
And that’s cricket.
