Time to catch the cricket fever

You don’t have to be a diehard cricket fan or a devout patriot to follow the national team as they prepare before their first match of the World Cup 2011, against Kenya in Hambantota. What our players need at the moment is support and faith in them; be it in the form of prayers, wearing green jerseys and caps or watching the match with friends and family and cheering for them.

For the owner of Jinnah Sports, the Karachi-based sports equipment wholesaler, “Keeping an eye on the men in green just makes simple business sense.” The city’s bustling MA Jinnah Road is teeming with shops of sports equipment and apparel. As cricket fever engulfs the country, shops are stocking up on team jerseys, cricket gear and memorabilia.

As the first match of the tournament got underway, Jinnah Sports was the only shop in the city selling jerseys identical to those that will be worn by the national side in their matches. “We watched the team practicing in the nets — that’s how we got the style of the jersey,” says Abdul Rahman, the store manager, proudly showing me the two-toned green shirt with an oversized crescent and star pattern on the front. Other store owners are waiting for the team’s first match before they start churning out replicas of the team jerseys.

Although sales of the jerseys have picked up, vendors of sporting goods complain that fans are not flocking to markets as they had in previous years. “During the World Twenty20 [that Pakistan won], we sold cricket bats, kits and shirts by the dozen, but this time the buyers don’t appear enthusiastic so far about supporting the national side,” says Kamran at Dhoraji Sports Equipment. This sentiment is not limited to shops of sporting goods. The owner of VIP Flags, Shaikh Nisar while speaking to The Express Tribune says, “Sales of the national flag have picked up as hotels and offices are decorating their interiors in line with the World Cup. But individuals are still not buying these things as they did in the past.”

The manufacturers of the country’s biggest flag had planned to beat their own record by making a flag larger than 17,3400 square feet, but have shelved the plans for now, given the lukewarm response of cricket enthusiasts. “Economic conditions are not encouraging and recent problems that have engulfed the team have taken some of the excitement out of the game for fans,” says Nisar. “But if the team puts up a good fight in the first couple of matches, there will definitely be a shift in people’s attitudes. Our nation loves cricket and even the slightest hope will be enough to bring back the fans.”

What do the fans have to say?

Many Pakistanis are nostalgic about the time when international fixtures used to take place in the country. “I really wish that we could have hosted some of the matches of this tournament in our country,” says Tariq Aijaz, a devout cricket fan. He says that the lack of enthusiasm is understandable in the wake of cricket scandals and the attack on Sri Lanka’s cricket team in 2009. But being a true supporter of his team, Aijaz says he will be rooting for the national side from the very first over. “Me and my friends are planning to show the later matches of the tournament on big screens so that lots of people can turn up and enjoy them together,” he says, hoping that Pakistan will deliver results in the game’s biggest tournament. In fact, many enthusiasts are planning to enjoy the upcoming games in grand fashion. Mubarak Caterers’ owner, Muhammad Nawaz reveals, “Bookings for screens are piling on quickly along with requests for catering services on match dates.”

It appears that while the nation is hopeful that the Pakistan team will rise from the doldrums in the tournament, they will need to see some fireworks before putting the money where their hearts are.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 20^th, 2011.