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Pak fans take defeat in their stride
While the Indians went delirious with joy over a magnificent win, a pall of gloom descended over Pakistani cities.
- NDTVSports
- Updated: September 29, 2007 07:54 AM IST
Read Time:2 min
Karachi:
But Indo-Pak rivalry has undergone a huge change, no longer is the cricket ground equated to a battlefield, now the game of cricket is allowed to be that - a game - and good performances on both sides are well appreciated.
The streets of Karachi were deserted as Pakistan played India in the historic Twenty20 World Cup final in Johannesburg.
Fans glued to the television sets were expecting their team to come hard at the Indians. And Misbah ul-Haq did raise their hopes but Dhoni's devils finally sealed their fate.
"The players who came in the start of match should have played well. The captain also didn't play very well. Younis Khan didn't play well too. What could the rest of the players do?" asked a Karachi resident.
And so began the accusations and counter accusations so familiar after failure hits a cricket team in the sub continent.
There were some scattered reports of effigies of allegedly "failed" players being burnt. But the good news is that most fans are now treating the defeat as a lost match, not a lost battle.
"This time again we faced despair but we enjoyed the fight as Pakistan performed very well," said a Pakistan resident.
"Pakistan has played very well today, but one can't help it if there is hard luck. A match between Pakistan and India is always very sensational. God willing, Pakistan will try to improve in future. They have done well throughout the tournament," another Pakistani added.
Imran Khan has seen the worst era of the Indo-Pak rivalry and he is glad things have changed.
Notwithstanding the loss, the Pakistan team will reap rich rewards for reaching the finals of the tournament.
Perhaps they will also be consoled by Shahid Afridi keeping the trophy of the most valuable player of the tournament.
While the Indians went delirious with joy over a magnificent win, a pall of gloom descended over Pakistani cities.But Indo-Pak rivalry has undergone a huge change, no longer is the cricket ground equated to a battlefield, now the game of cricket is allowed to be that - a game - and good performances on both sides are well appreciated.
The streets of Karachi were deserted as Pakistan played India in the historic Twenty20 World Cup final in Johannesburg.
Fans glued to the television sets were expecting their team to come hard at the Indians. And Misbah ul-Haq did raise their hopes but Dhoni's devils finally sealed their fate.
"The players who came in the start of match should have played well. The captain also didn't play very well. Younis Khan didn't play well too. What could the rest of the players do?" asked a Karachi resident.
And so began the accusations and counter accusations so familiar after failure hits a cricket team in the sub continent.
There were some scattered reports of effigies of allegedly "failed" players being burnt. But the good news is that most fans are now treating the defeat as a lost match, not a lost battle.
"This time again we faced despair but we enjoyed the fight as Pakistan performed very well," said a Pakistan resident.
"Pakistan has played very well today, but one can't help it if there is hard luck. A match between Pakistan and India is always very sensational. God willing, Pakistan will try to improve in future. They have done well throughout the tournament," another Pakistani added.
Imran Khan has seen the worst era of the Indo-Pak rivalry and he is glad things have changed.
Notwithstanding the loss, the Pakistan team will reap rich rewards for reaching the finals of the tournament.
Perhaps they will also be consoled by Shahid Afridi keeping the trophy of the most valuable player of the tournament.
Topics mentioned in this article
Cricket New Zealand Cricket Team Pakistan Cricket Team
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