The team’s performance in a major tournament like the World Cup is scrutinized as if it were a matter of life and death. A World Cup can have a lasting impact on a player’s career, it can turn an individual into a hero overnight, just ask Inzamam. While, a bad day at the office can turn an ordinary individual into a cult villain, the thought of Saleem Jaffar springs to mind. People who remember the 80s well or a ‘sports geek’ who finds pleasure in digging through the archives at cricinfo like myself can tell you, that Saleem Jaffar was not as bad as that one 18-run last over against Australia in the all-important Semifinal in 1987 turned him into. For the record, Pakistan lost the match by 18 runs eventually!
Well, such is the importance of a big tournament like the World Cup. Coming back to the topic, the people of this country are ‘mad’ about cricket, I know this is exaggeration, but, I love exaggerating things sometimes. Anyway any other word wouldn’t have done justice to the feelings that our people keep reserved for the gentlemen’s game, especially when it is played at the highest possible level - the World Cup.
Now, for people in Pakistan it’s easy to vent their feelings out on players who under-perform. But, for the ones living abroad it’s a different ball game, there’s a very selective range of words that can be used when criticizing the team. The simple reason behind this is that there you have to avoid being over critical as you have to keep in mind most of the times that, well this is not Pakistan!
And you cannot just go on slagging your players like you do in the streets of Karachi or Lahore. The spirit of nationalism takes over and you sometimes have to keep a lid on your feelings after a defeat. Pakistanis living abroad normally have good relationships with people from the sub-continent, but, that “Pakistaniat” gets into you when you are supporting your team in such a crucial match/tournament.
A cousin of mine who lived in the US during the 90s used to tell me how the temperatures soared up whenever they encountered a group of rival supporters at a screening. The heightened sense of things raises your blood pressure and in that scenario the eventual outcome of a match, especially a nail biting victory feels like absolute euphoria.
This year’s World Cup gave another opportunity for the fans of arch-rivals Pakistan and India, especially the ones living abroad, who come across each other on a daily basis to really rub it in! Unfortunately, for the supporters of Team Green they were on the receiving end of the tosh flung at them from rival supporters as Pakistan lost the opening match to India.
Forget social media, mainstream media mocked this defeat, one of many that Pakistan has suffered against India in the World Cup. Next up was the West Indies. This was a crucial match for both the sides, especially for Pakistan, as this was on paper at least the easiest of fixtures against the ‘big teams’. For the Windies also, this became almost a must win match as they had suffered a devastating defeat against Ireland in their opening fixture.
But, Pakistan appeared to not have learned from their mistakes from the first match. They kept the only specialist wicket keeper in the team, Sarfaraz, out of the playing XI for the second match in a row; Umar Akmal was the makeshift ‘keeper.
Pakistan’s batting lineup becomes frustratingly unreliable when they are batting second. And against the West Indies again Pakistan had to field first, and it was business as usual, bowlers bowling well and fielders spilling chance after chance. Eventually, however, Pakistan registered their second defeat in as many games. Things weren’t looking very rosy. South Africa with, well I cannot find the superlatives that can accurately describe this man, AB De Villiers in red hot form, were still to follow.
Between the match against the West Indies and South Africa, Pakistan played Zimbabwe and UAE. For the UAE they were too good, while against the Zimbabweans they battled it out to eventually claim two points. The team had got some much needed momentum and their eyes were fixed on the next crucial game ... against Ireland!
Well because nobody gave Pakistan a chance against the mighty Proteas, a defeat was a foregone conclusion but what unfolded was nothing short of a miracle in cricketing terms as Pakistan bowled South Africa out 29 runs short of a small target of 232. It wouldn’t have been a surprise in Two Ws’ days. But, this was a relatively inexperienced bowling lineup depleted by the absence of Junaid Khan, Saeed Ajmal and Muhammad Hafeez.
AB De Villiers was manning the onslaught and was on the verge of snatching a victory out of the jaws of defeat when Sohail Khan removed him. This was the first time South Africa had lost to Pakistan in a World Cup match, and what made the victory more enjoyable was the fact that it gave Pakistan a realistic chance of making it to the last eight.
The frustration, that Pakistanis abroad had kept hidden inside after the defeat at the hands of India, finally found an outlet.
These are the stories that we have received from Pakistanis around the world on how they celebrated this memorable victory and what was the atmosphere like before and after the match against south Africa.
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As the cricket fever grips the Indian sub-continent, temperatures rise in other parts of the world harbouring expats from Pakistan, Bangladesh and India, too. It is sad that our compatriots in other countries end up being roasted by friends and foes and have to take everything on the chin. Despite repeated failures, Pakistanis remain firmly on the side of their team, hoping against hope for the green shirts to give an honourable account of themselves. Us takes a look at how some cricket buffs from all around the world are following the World Cup…
As a student and part-time worker, I hardly get time to watch Pakistan’s matches. I am not even following the tournament. But yea, thanks to my contacts on Facebook, whose newsfeed keeps me updated. For me, Facebook statuses and posts are how I am following the World Cup this time.
Well, to be honest, I do not have a lot of expectations from our team in this World Cup. I was, however, very disappointed when we lost the semi-final in World Cup 2011 - that was the match we could’ve won. And yes, you do get some light-hearted banter from your Indian friends - but nothing too serious, at least not for me.
Honestly, one would have been delusional to think that Pakistan has a chance of surprising us in this World Cup. The team has been grossly inconsistent over the past year and a half and hasn’t played as a unit. Pakistan has been edgy since the beginning of their World Cup campaign, and I would be more than glad if we make it to the quarter finals! Having said that, I still believe Pakistan is one of the top five cricketing nations in the world, with a lot of young talent popping up on the streets due to a poor domestic structure. Here’s hoping the PCB pull up their socks for the next World Cup ... cheers!
Expected results so far, not too surprising. The issue is planning. We’ve been rebuilding the team since 2003. 12 years on and they still say it’s a young side. It’s about time that the youngsters take up the responsibility and carry the team forward. Also, we haven’t played as terribly as everyone made it sound. India was expected to win and the result against West Indies was just a bad day for us.
The winning team gets paid
So does the losing team
We only get tension
To be honest, losing a game isn’t all that bad, but our country’s reputation currently is so awful that this makes it worse. And then news about Moin Khan going to casino just adds to more embarrassment.
Oh crap. I don’t really follow cricket, so have no comments, haha. Does frustration count as a comment?
Cricket is no more our game!
Anyone criticising Pakistani cricketers and their performance, knows nothing about the game, and has no passion for it.
We lose some, we win some!
But sadly, due to our bad management, we are losing big time!
Victory and defeat are parts of any sport, and cricket is no different. I must say I am very disappointed with Pakistan cricket team. The reason for this disappointment is not their defeat to India and West Indies, but because their decision-making has been appalling. Leaving Fawad Alam out, although he was in such a good form, and playing a part-time wicketkeeper makes no sense. It is difficult to get my head round the thinking that the management of this team has.
Well, we have a lot of in-experienced and sort of juvenile players in our team who don’t really have the experience to play in such a huge event. Instead, they are busy taking selfies and having fancy haircuts. They lack the confidence and courage to stand up to the challenge. Anyway, it’s not the matter of winning or losing ... but letting it slip away just like that, irks the nation. Even if you are about to lose, put in some effort, man! We still have some matches; it’s not over yet. It’s like in 1992. We played horribly bad in the opening matches, but then we rose from the ashes and got the blasted cup.
Just bad ... period!
Umeed pay duniya hai. Whether Pakistan wins or loses the game, we still love Pakistan!!
LOL ... It’s not about winning or losing; it’s cricket. One team has to lose for the other to win. It’s frustrating to see when the team loses in an embarrassing way ... without putting up any fight. Another issue is that players who deserved to be selected have been left out. And players who fail so often are preferred over and over again.
Expats are extremely enthusiastic about this world cup! I have been living in New York for almost eight years now. Even though New York is the world’s largest and the most happening metropolis, being a Pakistani at heart and an expat, I feel there’s lack of awareness about cricket over here. Not many people participate in active conversations or discuss Pakistan cricket team. Still, several families have arranged for hefty packages on ESPN, Jadoo and Roku, while others are streaming it online from PC or cell phones. Everyone’s looking forward to see Pakistan repeating the history of 1992. There are thousands of us who anticipate a nail-biting match, but end up with a broken heart and often a broken TV, haha.
Cricket is slowly becoming popular in north eastern states like New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania. Every time we lose, we promise we will not watch any single game again, but end up glued to our couches late night, early morning and sometimes all day. We get to heated conversations with our Indian/Bangali friends and co-workers about whether we all should bleed blue or green. For some people, this competition almost turns into a rather lighter form of rivalry.
Like I said, this team holds an immense amount of talent and aptitude. Putting it to work is what we lack in. If they just put up enough effort and determination, no team in the world can stop us from bringing the world cup home again.
As I write, Pakistan has not yet qualified for the QFs although their chances of qualifying are high. They have a game in hand against Ireland while the West Indies are yet to play the UAE. Pakistan’s chances of finishing 3rd in Group B are high, which means they will most likely be facing Australia, who are arguably one of the toughest teams in the World Cup and they are playing at their home. You can always expect the unthinkable from the Pakistan team but, I think Australia will prove to be too hard a nut to crack on home soil! I hope that Pakistan team makes me eat my words!!!
I would like to take this opportunity to make a confession, and I hope it doesn’t become a ‘commentator’s curse’ kind of a thing. In the pre-World Cup write-up, I criticized Rahat Ali and Sohail Khan, and it was a delight to see Rahat Ali really crank it up a notch at such a major tournament. Sohail Khan has got deficiencies, in spite of picking up a five wicket haul against India in the opening match and then taking the all-important wicket of the mighty AB De Villiers against South Africa. Rahat Ali is under the shadows of Irfan and Wahab right now in this three-pronged left handed pace attack. Still, I personally feel Sadaf Hussain should have been brought into the national setup last year at least, he would have proved really handy on these tracks.
Similarities between 1992 and 2015 World Cups
By Usama Rasheed
The venue of both world cups is Australia-New Zealand
The skipper of Pakistan team in 1992, Imran Khan, hails from Mianwali, and so does the current captain Misbah-ul-Haq. They are also the oldest cricketers ever to have led Pakistan in any world cup.
In ’92 World Cup, opener Saeed Anwer and fast bowler Waqar Younis were ruled out with injuries prior to the tournament. In ’15 World Cup, Mohammad Hafeez and Junaid Khan, who play as opener and fast bowler respectively, had to face the same fate.
Inzamam-ul-Haq, who was selected as the middle-order batsman in ’92 World Cup belongs to Multan. Similarly, in 2015, Sohaib Maqsood from Multan has also been selected for the same position.
Wicket-keeper (1992) Moin Khan was from Karachi, and so is the incumbent wicket-keeper Sarfaraz Ahmed; both are also known for their aggressive batting.
In ’92, Pakistan lost to India and West Indies, and beat Zimbabwe in the group stage. Surprisingly, these have been the same results for Pakistan in World Cup 2015.
Back then, Nawaz Sharif was the Prime Minister of Pakistan, who holds the same office in 2015.
The kit of Pakistani teams in both world cups are the same. (Green chartreuse with the upper side having dark green vertical stripes and ‘Pakistan’ printed in golden colour)
Operation against MQM was carried out at their headquarters, Nine Zero, both in 1992 and 2015.