Did Pakistan fans capture the Sharjah Stadium?

 By K.R. Nayar

Sharjah. Pakistan fans made it look like they had captured the Sharjah Cricket Stadium. They had crowded at all entrances to the stadium waving their national flag. Chants of 'Pakistan jeethega' (Pakistan will win) began well before the match started.

This story was published in The Telegraph, India 

Pakistan team’s emphatic win over India is likely to have attracted many of them who had no plans of watching this World Cup. As a result, nearly 10,000 tickets got sold out, and the sale had increased after their team’s win over India. Sharjah Cricket Stadium officials opened ticket booths near the stadium too. Earlier, when the tournament commenced, tickets were available only online. 

Sharjah and Afridi

Sharjah cricket fans adore the name Afridi. In the earlier years, most Pakistanis would come to watch matches here mainly to see Shahid Afridi in action. In the late eighties and nineties, the majority of the taxi drivers in Sharjah were Pakistanis.  So when Afridi would play, there used to be a shortage of taxis since most of them would be at the stadium cheering for their hero. After Afridi announced his retirement from international cricket, there has been a sharp fall in Afridi’s appearance here except when the Pakistan Super League and T10 tournaments were held here. Now with the rise of Shaheen Afridi, especially after his great spell against India, they have another Afridi to cheer for. Also, Shaheen celebrates exactly the same way as Afridi does after taking a wicket - spreading his arms towards the sky.

Cricket4 Good if only ….

A huge billboard by the ICC was erected at the stadium. It read: “Cricket4 Good” This is an outreach programme of the ICC aimed at leveraging the vast power and reach of cricket to positively impact the lives of children and families worldwide. A Pakistan fan who was disappointed over some countries not touring Pakistan said if nations come and play cricket in Pakistan then cricket shall be 4Good and remain good. Unlike the India-Pakistan match, there isn’t any rivalry between Pakistan and New Zealand. Hence when New Zealand pulled out of the tour to Pakistan, it has made them their angry rivals.

 Keaton Jennings of Lancashire and Kuzhikkatt Sreekumaranunni (right) pose with the T20 World Cup

When sixes flew like Emirates

When Fahad Zaman hit a huge six, the Emirates airline advertisement saying 'Fly Better' appeared. And truly, the speed with which the ball flew out of the stadium would have surely made the fans happy. The shot was like a take-off from the middle. Since Emirates Airlines is one of the sponsors, the World Cup was displayed at the Emirates office a few hours before the Tuesday matches. Kuzhikkatt Sreekumaranunni, a Licensed Aircraft Engineer at Emirates Airlines in Dubai, after posing near the World Cup, said: “It does not matter who wins the T20 World Cup, today it is with us at Emirates.”

Big, bold and beautiful shots

Former Pakistan pacer Shoaib Akhtar’s tweet read “I request all Pakistan fans to remain silent and not enjoy too extravagantly. There is every chance that New Zealand may ask for the match to be called off due to too much noise inside the stadium, if not for security concerns,” evoked a discussion. An Indian fan who was supporting New Zealand said: “When Pakistan loses a wicket there will be pin-drop silence.” The applause for Asif Ali’s two consecutive sixes off Tim Southee in the 17^th over brought the roof down. Nissan’s advertisement that flashed saying 'Big, Bold, Beautiful' was appropriate when Shoaib Malik hit a big six and a boundary in the 18^th over.