By Harvinder Ahuja
India’s defeat at the hands of Pakistan in Champions Trophy Cricket Final on Sunday would, hopefully, bring a sense of realism among fans across the country and convince them to treat sport in a sporting spirit and not equate it with a warped sense of nationalism. It should particularly come as sort of awakening to those news channels and social media platforms which have been peddling jingoism around the Indo-Pak match, and at times even advocating scrapping of sporting ties with the ‘rogue’ nation.
No doubt, the two countries have been at loggerheads and India has repeatedly come out with evidence of Pakistan exporting terror to our country. Relations have been embittered for decades and various governments have tried and failed to solve the multifarious problems existing between the two. Still, that doesn’t give anyone the right to treat all Pakistanis as enemies and call for snapping social, cultural and sporting ties with them. But, unfortunately, that’s what has been happening with regular intervals and has become more frequent of late.
Two Bollywood films ran into trouble recently because some Pakistani actors formed part of their star-cast. Famous Ghazal singer Ghulam Ali had to cancel his scheduled performance in Mumbai as he had got whiff of trouble planned during the show. ORF Research Foundation chairperson Sudheendra Kulkarni got his face smeared with black paint for hosting a function for former Pakistan Foreign Minister Khurshid Mahmud Kasuri’s book release. Pak cricketers are not allowed to play IPL and cricket series between the two countries are a strict no-no.
It’s true that cricket is not merely a sport in our country. For majority of Indians, it’s a religion. The passions that cricket arousesamong our countrymen and the patriotic sentiments it sprouts are higher than those witnessed during I-Day and R-Day functions. And given the restrictive cricketing ties between the two countries, a match between India and Pakistan is treated like a ‘war’. Even if fans tried to maintain some kind of balance and not become over-sentimental about the match, social media and select TV channels won’t allow it to happen.
That’show it was during the two recent cricketing encounters between the two countries. Once India trounced Pakistan in the opening tie of the Champions Trophy, the entire country was euphoric. TV channels went hoarse with their eulogies for Team India and Pakistani players were slammed in the most uncharitable manner. Social media got crazy and the losing side became an object of ridicule. All that may still beunderstandable but what was objectionable was the political overtone relayed through some of the messages. War-like rhetoric and Pak’s role in Kashmir trouble beingdisseminated in the content of a cricket victory was awfully out of taste.
The final on Sunday provided another opportunity to these overzealous nationalists donning the garb of cricket enthusiasts to do an encore. A famed TV anchor, and a self-confessed opponent of cricket between India and Pakistan, lamented how everybody will be “amused and distracted” with the match forgetting “many serious issues” plaguing the two countries. The channel went even further to suggest giving a walkover to Pakistan in the prestigious tie. Thankfully, nobody listened to that advice!
And what a great match it turned out to be! Of course, the day didn’t belong to India and the lowly-placed Pakistan outclassed us in all departments of the game. The team, which was an underdog when the tournament began, defeated India comprehensively and walked away with the glittering trophy. Sarfraz Ahmed’s boys deserve every cricket lover’s plaudits for their exceptional batting performance and a sublime opening spell of bowling. A charged-up young bunch, who no one had given the remotest chance, left India completely in tatters!
After the match, most of the TV channels did largely fair post-mortems though some preferred to lie low. Whats App messages, however, turned jingoistic again inventing bizarre theories for India’s loss. Actors like Farhan Akhtar, Sushmita Sen and tennis ace Sania Mirza got trolled on Twitter for congratulating Pakistan. A prominent national daily chose to virtually blackout Pak victory on its front page. What it prominently displayed on Page 1 was India routing Pakistan 7-1 in the Hockey World League match, played a few kilometres away from the Oval.
It is sad how they all forgot that it was just a game of cricket and the better side on that particular day won the game. That was all there was to it.They could have learnt something from the TV footage on some channels showing how the atmosphere outside the Oval,where supporters of both sides were present in large number, was amicable and friendly post-match. There was no trace of bitterness and animosity. Everybody had come out after enjoying a good game of cricket.
That’ what it was! Just a game!
(The author is Delhi based Consulting Editor of Kashmir Age and can be reached at: harrysnigi@gmail.com)
Comments are closed.