The India-Pakistan cricket rivalry has always been something cricket fans, regardless of nationality, can enjoy. Even the match between these two sides played at a neutral venue like Bangladesh has fans going crazy and sometimes, it goes past the madness of the Indian and Pakistani fans.
One can ask why the craze of an Indo-Pak match in a country like Bangladesh, who are now one of the Test playing nations, is so intense. The answer would be the heritage and history between these two countries, which is somehow connected to Bangladesh, and the madness about the two nation’s rivalry was one of the most interesting battles even before Bangladesh started playing international cricket.
Yesterday’s curtain raiser of the World T20 Championship was something a cricket fan would dream of because an India- Pakistan match as the opening game of a tournament in a cricket loving country is something special.
Around 25,000 were at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium to witness the epic battle while millions all over the world watched it on TV and cheered for their favorite side.
Abdul Hamid, who is a middle aged service holder, planned to witness the match between India-Pakistan almost two months earlier as he is a big fan of MS Dhoni and the Indian team. He said that he wants to be a part of history, witnessing the match of these two side from the stadium.
“You never get the opportunity to witness a cricket match between India and Pakistan in Bangladesh and more importantly in the World Cup. I have planned to watch the match almost two months back and luckily I managed the ticket and here I am watching my hero Dhoni right in front of my eyes,” he said.
However, to witness a cricket battle between India and Pakistan one really does not need to be a fan of either side. It is the intensity and the competitiveness of the contest that for almost two decades enthralls cricket fans.
Afzal Ahmed, a businessman who is naturally a big fan of the Bangladesh cricket team, went to witness the India-Pakistan match yesterday. He informed that an Indo-Pak cricket match is like a Brazil- Argentina football match and if it is a World Cup match, it just adds the cherry on the top for a sports fan.
“From my heart, I will always support Bangladesh whoever we play against but as a sports lover I also want to watch an India- Pakistan match and if it is on a platform like World Cup which we are hosting then why should I miss the battle? Oh yes, I forgot to mention that I am a huge fan of Shahid Afridi,” he said.
There is no doubt that an India- Pakistan match will always get the centre of attraction even if it is played at a neutral venue. The intensity and the crowd will always remain the same.