So I realize that this is supposed to be a filmi blog, but I can't help it - I've been eating, breathing, living the World Cup these past few weeks, so I must talk about it.
THE match starts in a few hours, and there has been absolute pandemonium all over, the kind of pandemonium that only an India-Pakistan cricket match can create. Ever since it has been guaranteed that there'd be an IND-PAK semi-final - and, well, even before that - it's all anyone has been talking about. One would expect that - the competition in India-Pakistan matches always transcends the sport and goes into the realm of war and politics. Cricket-wise, they're already two teams that can set off sparks when they clash, but you go and add India and Pakistan's history to that, and you've got something else.
For this reason, the Indian media has touted this semi-final as being a "peace" match, a bridge between India and Pakistan. Actually, I don't understand the concept of a "peace" match. Cricket is the one thing that makes us more fiercely competitive than anything else - it is, in a sense, war. It seems that a lot hinges on the result of an India-Pakistan match - a win is extra sweet while a loss is extra bitter. But if you think about it, it's unfair to bring all these years of rivalry and tension onto the field during a cricket match. Why do we suddenly look to our cricket team to exact revenge on our rival? Why should the players have to feel the pressure of the match being used as a vehicle for peace talks between the Prime Ministers of the two nations? Cricket is war, yes, but the war should be limited to the game currently being played. Allow it to transcend beyond the stadium and make the game into what it's not, and we'll never achieve the peace we're talking about.
So, today, try to take the match for it is - a match. Cheer for your team, be hyper-competitive, feel free to make good-natured jokes about the opponents. But keep the match in perspective and don't look to it to create either war or peace.
Having said that, it's no doubt that this match is a biiig one. Both teams want the win, both teams deserve the win, and hopefully both teams will play for the win. It's going to be an epic clash and I absolutely cannot wait for it - hence the reason I'm up late writing this post instead of trying to get a few hours of sleep before I wake up at 4:30am to watch the match.
I'd love to be all diplomatic while ending this post, but I'm not going to pull a Ravi Shastri on you all and say that hopefully "cricket is the real winner." No, the real winner better be India. I'm praying and crossing my fingers for an Indian win on this one, so hopefully the boys will pull through with victory. To borrow a quote from Atul Kasbekar: "Today we won't Go Green, we'll just Bleed Blue." That is all.
THE match starts in a few hours, and there has been absolute pandemonium all over, the kind of pandemonium that only an India-Pakistan cricket match can create. Ever since it has been guaranteed that there'd be an IND-PAK semi-final - and, well, even before that - it's all anyone has been talking about. One would expect that - the competition in India-Pakistan matches always transcends the sport and goes into the realm of war and politics. Cricket-wise, they're already two teams that can set off sparks when they clash, but you go and add India and Pakistan's history to that, and you've got something else.
For this reason, the Indian media has touted this semi-final as being a "peace" match, a bridge between India and Pakistan. Actually, I don't understand the concept of a "peace" match. Cricket is the one thing that makes us more fiercely competitive than anything else - it is, in a sense, war. It seems that a lot hinges on the result of an India-Pakistan match - a win is extra sweet while a loss is extra bitter. But if you think about it, it's unfair to bring all these years of rivalry and tension onto the field during a cricket match. Why do we suddenly look to our cricket team to exact revenge on our rival? Why should the players have to feel the pressure of the match being used as a vehicle for peace talks between the Prime Ministers of the two nations? Cricket is war, yes, but the war should be limited to the game currently being played. Allow it to transcend beyond the stadium and make the game into what it's not, and we'll never achieve the peace we're talking about.
So, today, try to take the match for it is - a match. Cheer for your team, be hyper-competitive, feel free to make good-natured jokes about the opponents. But keep the match in perspective and don't look to it to create either war or peace.
Having said that, it's no doubt that this match is a biiig one. Both teams want the win, both teams deserve the win, and hopefully both teams will play for the win. It's going to be an epic clash and I absolutely cannot wait for it - hence the reason I'm up late writing this post instead of trying to get a few hours of sleep before I wake up at 4:30am to watch the match.
I'd love to be all diplomatic while ending this post, but I'm not going to pull a Ravi Shastri on you all and say that hopefully "cricket is the real winner." No, the real winner better be India. I'm praying and crossing my fingers for an Indian win on this one, so hopefully the boys will pull through with victory. To borrow a quote from Atul Kasbekar: "Today we won't Go Green, we'll just Bleed Blue." That is all.
