Since Pakistan arrived in Hyderabad, social media has been awash with photos and videos of the warm hospitality extended to the Pakistani players. Over the course of their two-week stay here, the Pakistani players have had nothing but positive things to say about their stay.
At the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Uppal, Pakistan’s first match against the Netherlands on Friday (6th Oct) drew a sparse crowd of roughly 9000 people. The next game on the 9th between New Zealand and the Netherlands had even fewer attendees. The buzz in the city, one of the few not hosting an India fixture, seemed a bit subdued. But on the third and final match of the ICC World Cup 2023, Hyderabad woke up, pouring in numbers in the 39,000 capacity stadium for the Pakistan vs. Sri Lanka fixture, making the game a rather memorable one. The final count on Tuesday stood at 24,181.
The fact that nearly 700 runs were scored on a belter of a track helped, and the crowd actually swelled when the news of Pakistan batting second under lights spread. With no Pakistan fans in attendance owing to visa delays, Pakistan players must have felt odd, but Tuesday was all about Pakistan and the support they received from Hyderabad.
Every shot Mohammad Rizwan hit was met with vociferous approval, every wicket with a gush of anticipation. The loud cheer as Babar Azam walked out to bat after the early fall of Imam ul Haq was probably the biggest highlight of the night.
When Mohammad Rizwan and Abdullah Shafique started to rebuild the Pakistan chase, getting themselves back in the game, each of Rizwan’s singles and doubles also brought cheers. Even though there are videos circulating on social media showing the crowds chanting “Jeetega bhai, Jeetenga, Pakistan Jeetega,” the latter part of the chant was more of a response to the first part that the DJ repeatedly blared.
READ: ‘Pakistan Jeetega’ Chants At World Cup Match In Hyderabad Stadium Draw Reactions From Social Media
As Rizwan put it aptly later during the post-match press conference, the crowd supported good cricket and cheered for both teams. When Kusal Mendis was putting on an absolute cracker of a show with Sadeera Samarawickrama earlier in the day, helping Sri Lanka reach 344, the crowd was fully behind the Lankans. Each of Mendis’ six sixes was received with rapturous applause.
Rizwan, who was named the player of the match for his masterful 131* in a record-breaking successful chase, enjoyed every bit of the crowd participation, stating that he felt like he was batting in Rawalpindi and not Hyderabad.
“I felt like I was playing in front of the Rawalpindi crowd; our ground in Lahore is big, and a lot of people come there. This ground felt like Rawalpindi,” said Rizwan, adding, “The way the crowd showed love today, and not just for me but for the whole Pakistan team, and they even supported Sri Lanka. I am happy that the crowd in Hyderabad has supported cricket, both Sri Lanka and us. I had a lot of fun with them.”
Rizwan has been Pakistan’s reliable performer for a while, and the two games against the Netherlands and Sri Lanka were proof enough of how important he is for this Pakistan outfit. Against the Netherlands, he, along with Saud Shakeel, helped Pakistan recover from a precarious 38/3. Today, while chasing 345 to win, Rizwan walked in at 37/2 and stayed until the very end, ensuring the victory.
“Unfortunately, 2 wickets fell early in the chase, and there was pressure. Abdullah Shafique and I had it in our minds that we would score at least 100 in 20 overs or somehow get ourselves to 100. So when they attacked, and we were trying to take Sri Lanka deep and somehow put pressure back on them,” Rizwan spoke about the revival of the Pakistan chase. Personally for Rizwan, he has been in rich form, and today’s century was his fifth fifty-plus score in just six games.
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While it was Saud Shakeel in the first match who stepped up, this time around it was Abdullah Shafique, just four ODIs old and replacing Fakhar Zaman, who remained level-headed and registered a remarkable century under pressure.
“The way Abdullah built the innings in the beginning, the kind of shots he hit, made it easy for us to chase the score,” said Rizwan, praising the 23-year-old and giving insight into the planning that went into their partnership.
“I told Abdullah, ‘don’t look at the board.’ We kept following our plan, as we had a separate plan till the 20th over, then a different one till the 30th, and another till the 40th over. This is what we planned. In our big chases, we had contributions from Babar Azam; everyone knows how big a player he is. Unfortunately, he got out, and when he got out, we adjusted our plan to bat normally until the 20 overs. It is this communication and calculation,” he added.
Even though Babar Azam failed to get going in both games and with Imam ul Haq also not among the runs, it was imperative for Rizwan to handle the two young players who got the opportunity, and he did that job to absolute perfection.
The Hyderabad leg of the World Cup 2023 has come to an end, and Pakistan will take a flight to Ahmedabad for their third game – the biggest one of them all – against India with some happy memories from the city.