I feel like a Pakistani today. And it is quite strange. Such is the power of cricket, you can say. And also its ability to unfailingly align sorrow and joy in equal measure.
In the first edition of T20 World Cup, two teams – India and Pakistan, who had become ridicules after being eliminated from One-Day World Cup earlier in the year, contested a memorable final. This year too, the two finalists – Pakistan and SriLanka, were cases of immense aptness, just for their horrific encounter with wishers of death on that inglorious day. Take into account the ravages going around in the two countries, Pakistan in particular. And it looks purely angelical.
It is such a circumstantial, and in that respect, unfortunate time that we have to pronounce these human-spirit-raiser rhetorics, rather than actual cricket, to savour the game. But somehow now every aspect of life has become interlinked. So, right from the day, India got eliminated, and Pakistan got into the semi-finals, I became a tacit but virtuous supporter of Pakistan.
I missed most of the final match today, but could watch the defining last few overs. Afridi has never been rated as highly by outsiders as done by his countrymen, but today he was a limelight. In fact, he has been throughout the tournament. But the biggest credit should go to the bowlers- the quintessential Pakistani breed. Umar Gul looked like an incarnation of Wasim-Waqar era, and watching Ajmal bowl often generated a vicarious feeling about Saqlain. In short, it was awesome to watch the unpredictability of Pakistan, and that in itself, means Pakistan cricket is healthy. If only, they can carry on this mercurial ethos. Sometime later, sanity will return in Pakistan mainland too- I am sure, but they will have much to thank to this team and time to act as a beacon in this pallidness of gloom.
