Cricket is such a uniting force in Pakistan and for those brief moments, from Karachi to the mountainous area of Gilgit Baltistan, Pakistan had become one
Everyone was cheering and there was an overarching feeling of unity
That night, I danced in the streets holding Imran’s poster with all those who had gone mad
Those scenes have become imprinted in our memory, and whenever we feel low, we try to recall those moments to assure ourselves that we have the potential to do it again
Twenty-five years later, I am no longer living in Pakistan but in a small town in the US
When Pakistan won, I did not yell or dance
I cried
Somehow the tears came rolling down and could not stop
Victory this time was sweeter and perhaps only the tears could express what I was feeling
Victory was sweeter because it had come after a long draught and was achieved by a team which was young and inexperienced
A team which had been the lowest ranked team at the start of the tournament and got badly bruised in the first match
But then, the very same team turned everything around and in such an emphatic manner that it literally blew away both England and India, the joint favourites, in successive matches
The 1992 turnaround was fairy tale stuff, but this exceeded even that
In 1992, the comeback was splendid but our wins in the semi-final and final were not one-sided
This time, the Pakistan team’s turnaround was so tremendous that world class teams like England and India looked like minnows in the semi-final and final respectively
It is perhaps the greatest ‘come-from-behind’ victory, which will be talked about for years
Victory is also sweeter because our nation has been desperate for good news
Nothing collectively uplifts Pakistan like a cricket win and as I write these sentences, I know Pakistanis back home are feeling ecstatic and will continue to feel euphoric for days
Victory is also sweeter because of the jingoistic and hate-filled diatribe which was constantly coming from certain sections (not all, as some were sensible) of Indian electronic and social media
I am not a typical ‘patriotic’ person by any stretch of the imagination, but even I could not keep myself from feeling anger after watching some of the things that were being telecasted on electronic and social media
https://www
youtube
com/watch?v=L9ZGh2ks6hs People like Virendar Sehwag, Arnab Goswami and Rishi Kapoor, to name a few, had been downright condescending
The victory has stunned them and silenced them
Compared to them, the Indian Captain Virat Kohli has shown class and good sportsmanship
https://www
youtube
com/watch?v=Yf38l1Kx2-I The victory has also given a shut up call to many Pakistani ‘experts’ who had constantly been belittling the cricket team and writing it off
People like Aamir Sohail went further and were undermining the team, despite the fact that it had successfully made to the final
https://www
youtube
com/watch?v=-3rbdOPencc The victory has finally dented the legend that Pakistan could only win international ODI tournaments under Imran
The fact that Pakistan had not won an international tournament after the 1992 World Cup endeared Imran even more; as many came to attribute the victory solely to Imran’s leadership
Since Pakistan was knocked out in the subsequent World Cups, public fascination with the 1992 tournament and Imran increased further
The phrase “cornered tigers” became permanently ingrained in the national psyche
More than anything else, this legend has given Imran the political capital which he commands today
If Pakistan had won international tournaments after 1992, Imran would not have become this prominent
For the past 25 years, Imran has constantly milked the 1992 victory to his political advantage
This victory in the International Cricket Council (ICC) championship has allowed Pakistan to step out of the shadow of Imran, and in my opinion, it is a great development
https://www
youtube
com/watch?v=Cc1HC8CDkEc Finally, the win has been a vindication for the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and more importantly, for Najam Sethi
Whenever Pakistan has performed poorly, cricket fans, particularly those who have a political affiliation with the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), have put the entire blame on Sethi
After the first loss, Imran was extremely critical and went as far as suggesting that Sethi should have been included as a player and alleged that cricket was in decline because of Sethi
Of course, Imran did not give any credit for the fact that the Pakistan Test team was able to reach the number one ranking under Sethi, or the fact that despite security risks, Sethi managed to hold the Pakistan Super League (PSL) final in Lahore
My point of view is this that if you blame him entirely for Pakistan’s defeats, then fairness demands that you also give him credit for the wins
Here, Imran and his supporters put the entire blame on Sethi when we lose and do not show the basic decency of giving him even partial credit when Pakistan wins
After the victory, Imran could not even show basic sportsmanship and congratulate the PCB
If Pakistan had lost, I am positive that Imran would have launched a tirade against him
My request to Imran and the hordes of his impressionable and self-righteous supporters is that if you blame Sethi for the defeats, then please give him credit for the victories as well
But the worst was that despite the Pakistan win, PTI supporters manhandled Sethi and his wife outside the Oval, which merely shows their pettiness
Even worse, instead of condemning this, PTI actually endorsed this by bragging about it in a tweet
This is the kind of reprehensible attitude the so-called educated party has
https://twitter
com/PTIofficial/status/876553650348244992 Yes, victory has been sweeter but incidences like this have also left a slight bitter aftertaste in the mouth
Date: | 22-Jun-2017 | Reference: | View Original Link |
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