Fans disappointed at Pakistan team's loss (1 June 1999)

1 June 1999

Fans disappointed at Pakistan team's loss

The Dawn

KARACHI, May 31: The Pakistan enthusiasts who had been chanting and celebrating their team's success until Friday, were shocked as Bangladesh recorded the biggest upset of the World Cup.

The heads of the followers of the game were down and several arguments were being given in support of the idea that it was a bad omen for Pakistan for regaining the coveted trophy.

"The winning streak has ended. If the captain feels that it is good to lose at this stage, well, then the other angle is that the team's bad days have started. Has Pakistan lost out to luck?," said Humayun Husain, a banker, who called Dawn's office to express his anguish.

"Our heads are down and the team is responsible for leaving us humiliated. Defeat is part of the game but to Bangladesh is totally unacceptable. Wasim Akram owes an explanation to the country," remarked Javed Bukhari who works in a private firm.

Not to surprise, several of the callers suspected that the match was a fixed one.

"If you recall, Pakistan lost to England and India in Sharjah in March after qualifying for the final. They have done the same again," said Khawaja Fariduddin, a vivid cricket follower.

He added: "Wasim Akram had been using the long handle and suddenly he scored 29 off 55 odd balls and then runs out Azhar Mahmood. Even when Pakistan needed nine an over, Saqlain Mushtaq and Waqar Younis played a maiden over. I think this match will go a long way for Justice Malik Mohammad Qayyum to reach the bottom of the investigations."

Rehan Mirza, a 54-year-old businessman, said: "The trend set by the Pakistanis in the field showed that they were least interested in the match. The agility in the field was missing while the application and concentration of the batsmen was lacking. I hate to say this but fact of the matter is that something fishy might have happened. I have been to England hundreds of times and there are betting shops all over the place. I just called England and came to know that one bookie was offering 40-1 against Bangladesh."

One Mukhtar Ahmad, a student of Karachi University, opined that Pakistan have washed all the good work they did in the league matches. "They (the team) have no face to show. Even if they return with the World Cup, the stigma of losing comprehensively to cricket babes will remain fresh for years to come."

The knives were all out for Shahid Afridi who has managed just 38 runs in four matches.

"What he is actually doing in England? Probably he (Shahid Afridi) even doesn't know. The lack of visuality of the selectors is exposed. They picked big names instead of assessing which players would excel in conditions like England," observed Fida Sarwar, an engineer.

One 69-year-old Abdul Rauf Subhani was so disturbed and upset that he minced no words in saying that the team should be thrown in river Thames. "They don't need to come back and we don't want to listen to any excuses. The penalty for losing to Bangladesh is that they all should be drowned in river Thames."

Source :: The Dawn (www.dawn.com)