KARACHI: With barely a few moments before the blockbuster World Cup clash between Pakistan and India begins at the refurbished 55,000-capacity Adelaide Oval in the South Australian capital on Sunday, the followers of Misbah-u-Haq’s men back home are generally anticipating an emotional battle.

In a survey conducted by Dawn, the Pakistan cricket enthusiasts from different walks of life on Saturday pledged to stand behind their unpredictable national team come what may.

Mohammad Omair Sabir, a young businessman who simply adores cricket, observed Pakistan had chances of beating India in all their previous World Cup encounters.

“Pakistan always had potential to beat them in the past but luck favoured India. This time, however, we are getting another opportunity to chalk that elusive maiden mega event victory against the Indians,” Omair pointed out with conviction. “And despite problems afflicting our team, I still maintain that we can win this one because India also have been found struggling in Australia recently. The beauty of our team is its unpredictability; they are capable of anything -- from outrageous to world-beaters.”

Masood-uz-Zaman Khan, an airline executive, echoed Omair’s words.

“Our greatest virtue is how we play. Having seen them in action for many, many years, Pakistan will always be unpredictable and are freakish at times.”

Mohammad Amin, chief financial officer at a multi-national company, advised Misbah’s men to play according to the situation.

“Pakistan are a good side and have the talent to even win the World Cup. If our batsmen try to play according to the merit of each ball, then runs will come automatically. The bowlers should focus on line and length while the fielders should be agile all the time and if all of them play like a team, there is no reason why we can’t win tomorrow,” he opined.

S.M. Arif, who takes out time from his business activities to watch whenever Pakistan play India, believes the men in green will do well under Misbah.

“In Misbah, we have a decent personality. He may not be a popular choice as captain but if there is anyone in our team to fight until the very end, it is him. Against India in an extreme pressure game as this one, Misbah’s calming presence on the field will definitely help his team-mates play as a unit,” he remarked.

Mohammad Ibrahim, a senior librarian who is a regular on a cricket field as a wicket-keeper despite his advancing age, noted: “A cricket match between India and Pakistan is always very interesting and full of energy. History of World Cup matches suggests India had the upper hand because Pakistan were under some kind of pressure.

“Since this will be a fresh game, there is no major difference between the two sides. Both captains are experienced. The biggest asset for Pakistan is that they have got game-changing individuals like Mohammad Irfan and Shahid Afridi and this could decide the match on Sunday.”

However, Shamveel Khan, who works as manager at a multi-national company, sounded disgruntled, saying: “I used to follow Pakistan team passionately but stopped watching them since they lost the 2011 semi-final to India at Mohali. On that occasion, a group of 20 [office] colleagues made it a point to wear the Pakistan team shirts when all of us together watched the game since it was a working day for us despite a national holiday being announced that day.

“This time there is no way I will sport the team shirt despite I will be at home. I may or may not watch the game at all given our past history against India.”

Athar Karim Khan, a banker by profession, thinks otherwise and admitted he and his family will enjoy the occasion.

“It is a golden opportunity for us to beat India on Sunday. We are expecting some relatives at our place. All of us are going to savour the moment of watching the ‘the match of 2015 World Cup’. It doesn’t get bigger than this when Pakistan and India confront each on cricket’s biggest stage. I’m pretty sure the streets across length and breadth of both countries will be deserted just for this game.”

Published in Dawn February 15th , 2015

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