When India confirmed its tour of Pakistan, there was a lot of hoopla and excitement but the initial concentration was on security and cricket itself played second fiddle. Along with security, there was an exchange of political pleasantries.
Once the cricket got underway only then did we get down to serious business and only one Test match remains before the curtain comes down. I don't think that the Indian players or the media that has come with them will have any complaints. They have been looked after as honoured guests and one hopes that all fears have been dispelled and all anxieties removed.
Now we can get back to normal cricket relations and not make this game a hostage to other agendas. The greatest concern was the absence of crowds at Multan and Lahore and since this is being written before the start of the Test match at Rawalpindi, one does not know whether the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium too will wear that desolate look.
Cricket no longer depends on crowds for revenue. There is sponsorship and television rights that fill the coffers. But even a television viewer feels the absence of crowds. It makes the telecast flat and to raise the volume of sound effects is not the same as catching the actual cheering.
The PCB must carry out a study why the Test matches were played before empty houses. It is not enough to say that the ODIs stole the thunder though I do agree that it would have been better if the Test matches would have been played first.
It was the Indians who laid down the terms and conditions of the tour. Was the security too intimidating? Or was the scheduling wrong? The Multan Test match started on a Sunday, Lahore on a Monday and Rawalpindi on Tuesday. Thus the Test matches were played on working days.
We never got the benefit of a weekend. This too may have been unavoidable. It still doesn't add up. Attendance at Test matches is on the up in all Test-playing countries. The West Indies has lost the series to England, rather ignobly, but there was a pretty good crowd at the Antigua ground and a carnival atmosphere.
I was particularly disappointed to see the Qadhafi Stadium looking like a ghost town. There were probably more Indian supporters than Pakistan's. When we first started to telecast matches, it was felt that it would result in low turn-outs at the grounds.
To offset this, the telecast for the city where the Test was played did not start till after the tea interval. Could this be a part of the solution? I did not think that Test matches between India and Pakistan needed aggressive marketing. It is a product that sells itself but apparently not. We should try and come up with answers.
The PCB will be making a lot of money from this tour, astronomical sums are being mentioned. How does it propose to spend this money? Presumably, it will be ploughed back into the game but one hopes not into state-of-the-art academies or building its own stadium at Islamabad.
The money must be spent on grass-roots cricket, in smaller towns and among poorer sections of our society. They are the ones who have no facilities. They don't need anything fancy, just the basics.
I hope the PCB will consider appointing a special committee for this purpose and it should not be made up by ex-Test cricketers and bureaucrats but social workers, those who are in touch with the other half of our society and feel some of the pain.
A lot of ex-Test cricketers have taken to writing for newspapers and websites and appearing on talk show for various television channels. I welcome this, the more the merrier and they add spice to the coverage. But it is poor journalism if they bring their petty quarrels with them or use the platform to get even.
I don't want to get into personalities but there has been some muck-raking. Some, on the other hand have proved worthy of their trust. I have particularly enjoyed Bishen Singh Bedi and Asif Iqbal. Bish is an old friend (as is Asif) and is that a MCC tie that he wears? Bish used to accuse me of being a snob.
If I was to make a list of my favourite cricket persons, Bish along with Keith Miller would top the list. Bish can be serious and he can be funny and what endears him to me is that he can be both at the same time.
A final paragraph for Waqar Younis though he deserves more. It's a tough decision to hang up one's boots but all good things must come to an end. At his best, none was better and he served Pakistan cricket with colour and dignity. Though many a batsman facing him lost both colour and dignity. The art lies in being remembered with affection.
In my book, there is a lot of respect for him as well as affection. Retirement from cricket is not the end of the world, It may seem that way, at first. But there are other worlds to conquer and he has my best wishes. Well bowled Waqar.
I hope he will continue to remain engaged with cricket in some way. He brings with him a bag full of rich experience and it should not be allowed to be wasted. There are many avenues available to ex-Test cricketers if they want to remain in cricket. Cricket owes him a lot.
And he owes cricket a lot. Does it even out? In cricket, no debt is fully paid but in the final accounting, cricket is not the one that is in the red.
