Anything for ‘grudge match’ between us and ‘P-us’

Rohit Mahajan in London

YOU’d think it’s a ticket to paradise, the way Indian and Pakistani fans are craving for a ticket for tomorrow’s Champions Trophy final.

“I’ll buy it at any cost,” says a breathless Radha Mehta at the gate of the Oval ground. She’s at the stadium to catch a glimpse of the Indian players; she’s also on the lookout for two tickets. But the ticket window is closed, the tickets are long gone, and she hopes she’d be able to find an individual seller in the black market. But “any cost” is a slight exaggeration, for there’s a limit to the cost she’s put on a quick visit to paradise. “A friend managed to buy it for £250, and I can pay £50 more than that, maybe...” On auction websites, tickets with face value of £50 are selling for £400. That’s a high price to pay for what’s often described as “just a game”.

But it is no “just a game” for fans such as Mehta. An India game means a lot for the Indian diaspora: A rare occasion they spot sporting heroes of their own ethnicity, something to be proud of, something that reminds them of “home”. And if it’s a game against Pakistan, it becomes a huge grudge match.

The multi-layered identities of immigrants in Britain allow them to support England and their “mother” countries at different times. Yesterday, just after spotting Rohit Sharma walking away from the Birmingham city centre after having his breakfast, a Pakistani-origin man, Rizwan Khan, said: “I hope he’s out early against us!”

He spoke with a pucca British accent, but “us” refers to Pakistanis.

India’s batting might

Rohit Sharma could pose problems for Pakistan, as could Shikhar Dhawan and Virat Kohli. Dhawan has scored the highest number of runs in the tournament, 317, and is closely followed by Rohit (304), while Kohli has got 253 with only one dismissal, so he’s averaging 253.

But the best batsman during practice, according to various nets bowlers, has been Kedar Jadhav, and he’s batted only 13 balls this tournament. MS Dhoni has got a half-century in the only innings he’s played, and Hardik Pandya has smashed four sixers off the 11 balls he’s played in two innings.

India bats, Pak bowls

Thus, it would appear that yet again, it’s a fight between India’s batsmen and Pakistan’s bowling. Two of the top-five bowlers are Pakistanis: Hasan Ali leading with 10 wickets in four games, and Junaid Khan fourth with seven from three.

Mohammad Amir, who’d missed the team’s previous game due to an injury, will be back for the final. He brings another dimension to the bowling with his angled deliveries, pace and bounce.

However, swing has been rare, despite this being England. Various theories are in currency over it, and the main one targets the quality of the ball in use. The white ball being used has a very hard lacquer and doesn’t easily get rough. This means that it’s very difficult for the fielding side to ‘maintain’ and ‘prepare’ it for swing by ensuring that one side remains rough and dry and the other wet and heavy.

The lack of swing takes the sting out from Pakistan’s pace bowling. Yet, as Ali demonstrated against England, they’ve got a lot of skills other than swing — change of pace, movement off the seam, clever lines and lengths, they can do it all.

Not war

War terms and analogies are being bandied about, so it’s important to reiterate that it’s not war. It’s sport. It certainly doesn’t feel like war here. Indians and Pakistanis here have imported their enmities to this country, but they’re friends as well. Living together, working side by side, they’ve come to one bewildering realisation -- they’re practically the same people!

“It was here that I realised that it’s easier for me to communicate and relate with a Pakistani from Sialkot than a Tamil or Bengali person from my own country,” says Kulwinder Singh, who moved to the UK from Nawanshahr, Punjab, 14 years ago.

“I have Indian friends,” says Sajid Khan, a Southall resident. “My next-door neighbours are from India, from Gujarat, and we maintain the South Asian tradition of visiting each other’s home for a chat. I’ve lived in the UK for 26 years, and I have white saxen... But never have I been invited to their home. We do meet at pubs or restaurants, pay for our own food and drink, and then go home. But among the South Asian community, there’s a sense of warmth for each other.”