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Nuclear Wicket
India and Pakistan bat it out
. . . by Colin Rennert-May

When you think of the great sports rivalries, these are probably a couple of examples that come to mind. Yankees vs. Red Sox. Maple Leafs vs. Canadiens. But last week, perhaps the world’s most intense sports rivalry (other than Sampras vs. Agassi) came to the fore. When India and Pakistan were drawn to play against one another in the Group A round robin of the Cricket World Cup in South Africa last Saturday, people knew that this would be a major game both on the field and off.

Sticky wicket
India vs. Pakistan: there has never been such an intense sports rivalry between two countries. Not only are they two of the best cricketing teams in the world, but political tensions have also been high between the two neighbors. Not even a year ago, the two countries were again at the brink of nuclear war. Of course, it’s not the first time that nuclear powers have paired off against one another. The 1980 Miracle On Ice—with the U.S. team defeating the highly-favored Soviets in an Olympic hockey semifinals held in Lake Placid, NY—is one notable example from the past. But for most Americans, the victory was only marginally athletic. At the time, hockey was hardly even on the radar for most of the U.S. But the victory did have a significant political resonance. America had the bragging rights: they showed those Soviets which country was best. They had beat Russia at its own game.

As intense as the game was and as incredible as victory seemed, the Cold War was never colder than that night in the hockey rink. There were no riots in response to the results. The idea of military action was laughable. With India and Pakistan, however, the political situation is much, much hotter. Since declaring independence in 1947, India and Pakistan have had three official wars, several violent skirmishes, and a series of intense negotiations over the disputed Kashmir province in the north of both countries.

The cricket teams last met in 2000, in an Asia Cup Test Tournament in a game won by Pakistan. They were supposed to play a test series in Pakistan in 2001, but the Indian government refused to allow the team to tour because of increased tension between the two countries. They even rejected a plea to reconsider from Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf. The same thing happened two years later, when India was again due to tour Pakistan. The International Cricket Council (ICC) has attempted to negotiate a deal with the two countries to play in a neutral location, but no solution has been reached.

But neither team could avoid this match.

A good knock
Despite attempts by both captains to play this match down as “just another game”, the stakes were clearly high. True, it was only a first-round game, but when India and Pakistan play, it always feels like the finals. Also, for Pakistan, this was a win or die situation. After a hard loss to England a few days earlier, they needed a win to advance to the second, “Super Sixes” round. Before the match, posters in India read, “If you lose, don’t come home.” Many businesses and schools were closed for the day. During the game, Pakistanis prayed for their team as they watched on the television.

But the match wasn’t only political. It also featured a matchup of some of the best players in the game. Take Pakistani fast-bowler Shoaib Akhtar, nicknamed The Rawalpindi Express, who set the record for the fastest bowl ever (over 100 mph) in an earlier World Cup game against England. Or Indian Sachin Tendulkar, probably the best batsman in cricket today, and possibly one of the best ever.
The game did not disappoint. Pakistan batted first and posted a solid score of 273, including a superb century (one hundred runs or more scored by a single player) by Saeed Anwar. India’s chances seemed slim when Tendulkar strained his thigh, but he fought through the pain to post a score of 98. India’s batsmen dominated, and, in the end they defeated Pakistan with time to spare.

The post-game show
Millions and millions of fans poured into the streets of India after the win. Riots broke out in Gujarat province. One fan speaking to the BBC saw the win as major victory over the enemy. “We have won the war without any bloodshed,” he said. Meanwhile, in Pakistan, people burned pictures of the team’s players. The Pakistan Cricket Board announced that it would create a committee to examine the reasons for their team’s early departure from the World Cup.

But in South Africa, things are relatively calm. After the first round, India has moved on to the Super Sixes stage with a good chance of making the semifinals. Pakistan will make an early return trip home, much to the disappointment of their fans, and the Pakistan team issued a public apology to their country. “We are ashamed, disappointed, sad and heartbroken after letting the nation down,” the statement said. “We knew that we were carrying the hopes of millions of our fans and have failed to live up to expectations. We tried our level best; we trained extremely hard and did everything within our reach. But things didn’t work out the way we would have liked to and we have no excuses to offer.” But it’s hard to tell what hurt more: the failure to advance to the second round…or the bitter loss to India.

Colin Rennert-May B’03 should have been writing about giants in literature or Nigeria Yam farmers instead of following cricket.

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