cricket is a game not war

Pakistan, like any other cricket playing country, is a worthy adversary. However, when Pakistan plays India, it is seen as a fight between the enemies. I suspect it is not just the cricket rivalry that drives thousands of Indians and Pakistanis to adopt such a hostile attitude, which is a sport.

There was a time when cricket in India was an urban, mainly middle class, sport. The players were praised; Not idolatry. In his personal life, the players acted as normal; Their wives did not become celebrities immediately after marriage. Players were paid less amount; He did not earn manifold more money by playing cricket and advertising the products. (Bapu Nadkarni, a slow left-arm bowler who could bowl first after first, revealed that he would take the suburban train to the Brabourne Stadium in Bombay – now Mumbai – and play for India in a Test match. 50 per day will be paid for this!)

The game has changed beyond recognition. For decades, the only version was the 5-day Test – slow, often boring, and with no certainty of outcome. The change began with one-day, 50 overs per team, one-day matches. There was no question of a ‘draw’ as the competition always produced a ‘winner’. A tie was rare, and tie-breaker play threw out a winner. The game changed even more dramatically with the introduction of the 20-over version. No one knows what the next change will be, but it will certainly be intended to excite the audience. If I can guess, it could be a 50-over side, two innings each, a three-day Test match!

More countries are playing cricket and more are graduating from ‘minnows’ to ‘can-beat-any-side-on-a-good-day’ teams. Afghanistan is an example (2 wins out of 5 matches in the World Cup). The strange coincidence is that all 12 countries participating in the T20I World Cup are English speaking nations, although I doubt whether the team’s players speak Hindi, Urdu, Bengali, Sinhala, Persian, Pashto, Afrikaans or Oshiwambo. If and when the sport spreads to non-English speaking countries – particularly in Europe and South America – it will become a truly international sport like football or tennis.

base feelings

It is a matter of great concern that India and Pakistan consider each other on the cricket field not as enemies but as enemies. No other game played between the players of the two countries evokes such enmity. Olympic javelin champion Mr. Neeraj Chopra beat Pakistan’s Mr. Arshad Nadeem in anger and hatred without Pakistani fans. I think if the result had been the opposite, India would have had the same calm atmosphere.

What is it about cricket that evokes the core sentiments of otherwise knowledgeable fans in India and Pakistan? Some think it has to do with wars fought between the two countries, cross-border terrorist activities and political rhetoric. Nevertheless, players from both countries fight each other in hockey or boxing or wrestling, their supporters do not turn into fierce soldiers.

What is more painful is that the mutual animosity takes a brutal turn and targets individual players.

Wealth Mohammed Shami There was abuse and trolling after India lost to Pakistan. The obvious and indisputable reason was that Mr. Shami is a Muslim. The undisclosed allegation was that he had done ‘India in’. Nothing can be more ridiculous than such an allegation. The abusers forgot that Mr. Shami’s bowling had won the number of matches for the Indian team. He is a tireless hard worker who can create brilliant spells of energy and deceit. Equally pathetic was a remark by a Pakistani minister that Pakistan’s victory was a “victory for Islam”. Like Mr. Shami, many Muslim players have made India proud. The names that immediately come to mind are Mr. Mohammad Azharuddin,

Shri Abbas Ali Baig, Shri Salim Durrani and Late Mansoor Ali Khan, Nawab of Pataudi. Two of them captained the Indian team.

stop the spread of poison

I suspect that the poison that is being spread in the politics of the country has spread to cricket stadiums and cricket viewing rooms. Among the best writers of India are poets, musicians, painters, actors, scientists, professors and teachers, doctors, lawyers, architects, businessmen and legislators Muslim. Mr. Shami’s Muslim faith is irrelevant to his cricketing prowess and his achievements. it’s good that mr Virat Kohli, the captain lost no time in condemning the abusers and trolls as “spineless people”. People from different walks of life did the same. It is unfortunate that the Sports Minister kept quiet.

When any citizen of India (Mr. Shami, in this case) is humiliated because of his religion, every other citizen should feel insulted. After the killing of 51 Muslims by a white supremacist,

New Zealand’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern united her citizens with three simple words: “We are one”. I want to hear such words in India.