For years, India versus Pakistan was a tense affair. And yet, it was a cricketing rivalry. There were great duels – Sachin Tendulkar against Wasim Akram or Shoaib Akhtar, for example – and whoever won became a national hero. But all of this was limited to cricket. Yes, the army jawans would celebrate a victory, but never did that take centre stage. The Asia Cup has changed it all. India-Pakistan is no longer a cricket match. It has turned into something very different, and in the process, the sport has lost out.
Let’s not get into the rights and wrongs. Let’s just state facts. The fact is that cricket has lost out in the last three weeks of drama. Cricketers have turned into gladiators who can’t lose a match. The truth is there will always be a winner and a loser. And yet, you just don’t want to lose. So what if this is a game? For all practical purposes, it is something else.
Since the Asia Cup final, I have had a few hundred people ask me what if India had lost the match. What would have happened then? I have tried to tell myself that nothing would have happened. The world wouldn’t turn upside down, and things would move on. The sun would come out, and we would all carry on with business as usual. But then, would that really be the case? Insults and barbs and all else would continue. And things would become intensely politically charged yet again.
This can’t be good for sport. Going forward, the pressure is only going to increase on the fans and players, and jingoists will make use of the game to indoctrinate young people. The 16-year-old Pakistan footballer with his celebration in Colombo last week was the perfect case in point. No one said a word to him for what he did, and he will grow up thinking he is quite a hero. In reality, he is a fool. One who has lost track of his life, and will perhaps give up on a good career.
I could see how charged the press box was. At the end of the game, a few of us even said that everyone should keep a lid on it, and things shouldn’t get out of hand. And that’s why I asked Suryakumar Yadav if India had won, but the sport had lost. With every passing day, cricket was the loser.
The question is: can things change going forward? Where will this rivalry now go? Is there a way back?
The answer, sadly, is no. When administrators make mischief, when people in positions of power forget their responsibilities, things can never be the same again. Forget Haris Rauf and Sahibzada Farhan. Forget Surya. Players can be pulled up if they are out of line. Who pulls up someone like Mohsin Naqvi, who is supposed to set an example?
Who tells him he is out of line in provoking the players? Who tells him he had no business putting out those tweets? He is happy catering to his political constituency, and in the process, the sport has lost out. The cricket rivalry is now dead. What we have left is a monster, which will next be glimpsed in Colombo on October 5.
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