Asia Cup 2022: Off-field drama overshadows the classic rivalry that Pakistan vs Afghanistan is shaping into-Opinion-news-expert-views-news-analysis-firstpost-viewpoint News , Firstpost

Afghan fans cheer their team on during Afghanistan’s Asia Cup Super 4 clash against Pakistan in Sharjah. AFP

The story of the Afghanistan cricket team, from a raggedy outfit coming out of the clutches of a long, bloody war to a side that could give the best teams in the world a proper fight on their day, is nothing short of a fairy tale.

From winning the odd match in the 2015 World Cup to giving top sides a run for their money in the ongoing Asia Cup, the Afghans certainly have come a long way in the sport. That they were considered among the favourites to win the title after Afghanistan became the first team to qualify for the Super 4s with victories over Sri Lanka and Bangladesh is an indicator of their growth over the years.

Sure, their cricketing skills have improved by leaps and bounds and the team certainly does have global stars in their ranks. However, if there’s one area where Afghan cricket needs to put in more work, it is keeping their emotions in check. And more than the cricketers, it’s their fans who need to bear this in mind.

What was perhaps the match of the tournament so far in the Asia Cup and one of the most thrilling T20s in recent memory ended up getting sullied by scenes of violence in the stands at the Sharjah Cricket Ground on Wednesday as Pakistan beat Afghanistan by one wicket in a nail-biter to seal their qualification into the final.

First there was the on-field exchange between Fareed Ahmad and Asif Ali after the left-arm seamer dismissed the Pakistani middle-order batter. And while there were some wild celebrations on the field after Naseem Shah struck those two sixes off Fazalhaq Farooqi to seal a memorable win for his side, things got only worse for the organisers and the stadium security at Sharjah as Afghan and Pakistani fans were engaged in a full-blown brawl in the stands, flinging seats at each other among other things.

Read: Pakistan’s Asif Ali, Afghanistan’s Fareed Ahmad fined for on-field altercation

The incident was widely condemned across the cricketing fraternity with stars such as Shoaib Akhtar calling on the Afghans to “learn a few things” — which was met with a stern response from a former ACB official — and PCB chief Ramiz Raja talking about the board writing a letter to the ICC in complaint.

This however, certainly isn’t the first such instance between the two sides. Afghanistan and Pakistan have produced quite a few closely-fought contests over the years and every now and then emotions certainly do spill over and end up creating ugly scenes, as was the case during the 2019 ICC ODI World Cup in England in which fans of the two teams clashed outside Headingley in Leeds ahead of the league stage match.

Hooliganism among fans isn’t something that’s new or rare in sport. It simply is a byproduct of the belief and emotions that the fans invest in their favourite teams or athletes, and non-performance more often than not does evoke a strong response. And rivalry between two teams often gets further intensified if there’s political or cultural context involved. As is the case in the Indo-Pak cricketing rivalry that surely ranks among the fiercest in sport.

Read: Afghan anger against Pakistan during Asia Cup is no exception but a global phenomenon

And while there is an occasional skirmish between fans from both teams, as had reportedly happened after the 2017 Champions Trophy final at the Oval, you don’t often witness heated arguments or clashes break out as regularly between Indian and Pakistan cricket fans. There are plenty of clips on video-sharing platform YouTube of the two sets of fans dancing to the beats of a dhol ahead of a cricket match, freely mingling together and perhaps doing a better job at bringing the two nations closer than their diplomats.

Or one could just browse through the content that popular Pakistani influencer Momin Saqib puts up on his accounts, to get an idea of how well these two fan bases get along when politics is kept at bay. And remember, these are two nations that have fought multiple wars over the past seven decades.

While they aren’t exactly political rivals, England and Australia too share quite the rivalry in cricket that spans more than a century and has its share of historic, era-defining moments. And while you would witness a fiery pacer looking to knock a batter’s head off during an Ashes game, very rarely would you witness things going astray in the stands; a banter between the Barmy Army and the Aussie fans usually doesn’t extend beyond the number of beers guzzled and the quality of chants that they come up with, in which the English contingent appear to be ahead by miles.

Afghanistan might be a cricketing power on the rise, but it will need its cricketers, especially stars such as Rashid Khan who will undoubtedly have an influence on the Afghan society in general, to shape future generations of fans into genuine supporters of the game. And the same principle by and large applies to Pakistan, India and the rest of the cricketing world as well.

The Afghan-Pakistani rivalry sure has the potential to stand out in the global game in the years to come, but it can certainly do without all the unpleasant scenes.

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