THE FINAL PILGRIMMAGE

Yes! The childhood dream now stands fulfilled. On 23^rd Sept 2018, I witnessed Indo Pak Clash in Super 4 round of the Asia Cup.

And yet there is an underwhelming feeling to this experience. Have I seen a bit too much of Imtiaz Ali…. Manzil se Behtar lagte hain yeh Raste..... or is it the fact that India registered their biggest ever victory in ODI cricket against Pakistan in the match could be the reason…… There can be multiple reasons for this weird feeling, where I achieved what I wanted to and now I think I wish I did not achieve it. However it was a journey that I simply could not avoid

The millennials, who would have watched the last 10 years saw India and Pakistan meet  14 times and India came out at the top in 9 of them. So they would not understand the fuss about the contest. One has to confess that, one has to be above a certain age to be able to understand the rivalry of India Pakistan contest.

India became the World champions in 1983 despite having a weaker record in limited over cricket till such this date. This is both overall and head to head. To exploit the already existing hate between the two nations and their love for cricket, Sharjah  was chosen as the venue for India-Pakistan clashes, which showcased the cricketing skills of these countries in the backdrop of war-like imagery. People have argued that this literal “war minus the shooting” did immense damage to the cause of friendship between the two nations. The images of foul-mouthed, flag-waving spectators inside the stadium, being beamed live inside millions of drawing rooms in the two countries, became the new tool to prove how “hatred” for each other defines the two neighbors. Yet what cannot be forgotten is the nail biting contests that defined these battles. A last ball 6 by Miandad off Chetan Sharma actually demotivated India so much that for next 3-4 years, we could not win a contest against the arch rivals. It took almost 10 years (1997) for India to return the favor when Rajesh Chauhan hit that 6 in the last over… the venue was Karachi. Then there are other images which flash across your memory …. the Sohail send off from Prasad at Bangalore in 1996, the More Miandad kangaroo fight in Australia in 1992, the cut of Tendulkar off  Akthar 10 rows back at South Africa in 2003, the “Aaloo” that ran behind the spectator at Canada, the 314 chase in Independence Cup at Dhaka where Hrishikesh Kanitkar became a hero and I could go on and on. However the most enduring memory for me was the fear that the Pakistani players had on us. I would fear a Wasim, Waqar, even Aaqib Javed and even if India was cruising, I never felt safe because we knew the never say die attitude of Pakistan. To me that quality alone made Pakistan Pakistan.

In the last decade the balance has decisively shifted towards India. I did some number crunching and the statistics reveal what we knew

Duration	Matches	India Win	Pakistan Win	India Win %
Overall	131	54	73	41.22%
upto 2000	78	27	47	34.62%
Last 10 years	14	9	5	64.29%

Pre 2000s, India would win only 1 of the 3 matches it played. Post 2000, that ratio improves dramatically to a point that now Pakistan wins only one of the 3 matches it plays against India. However even more worrying for the Indo Pak contest are the results of last 5 matches including the one I saw yesterday

It shows not only that India has won 80% of the time in last couple of years, but it shows the contest were one sided. Even the lone Indian loss was a dramatic one sided affair.

However we need to remember that Pakistan cricket works. No team has defied odds so routinely in the history of any sport. You can, in fact, always give them good odds on defying odds. I know that doesn’t make sense, but so does the enigma of Pakistan cricket team. It seems they are on a mission of putting cricket pundits, fortune tellers and bookies out of job. Pakistan loves to lose when you back them to win and when you give them no chance, they will turn in their best performances. You bet on them at your own peril. Not sure how, but it does. It’s counter-intuitive, a bit like Quantum Physics for a layman, but there is ample proof of it around. It’s kind of weird too, it succeeds even when you think it’s laughably inept. And hence you can never ever ever ignore them. I have certain friends who despite seen this multiple times do not acknowledge this and hence they would be proven wrong. I am certain of this fact. The only thing predictable about Pakistani team is their unpredictability. Hence the admiration and the feeling of satisfaction when you see Pakistan being defeated co exist in me. 

Having said all of the above, I must admit I have this weird hate-hate relationship with Pakistan cricket. I hate it when they seem invincible. I hate it when they seem defenseless. Only a moderately successful Pakistan team keeps me at peace. But for Pakistan cricket, moderation seems haraam. 

While it was underwhelming to have witnessed the contest but as I said before, for the people above a certain age, the baggage we carried, it had to be let off. I can now die in peace! 

Yesterday with that biggest Indian Win in limited overs cricket I completed my pilgrimage. 

Jai Hind!