ICC World Cup
Arthur terms game against India opportunity for Pakistan to make a mark
DNA
MANCHESTER
Perennial political rivals India and Pakistan will face off on a Manchester cricket field today in one of the World Cup’s most hotly-anticipated and massively-watched games.
The nuclear-armed neighbours have gone to war three times since independence in the mid-20th century – and another conflict nearly erupted earlier this year, giving an even spicier-than-usual geopolitical backdrop to the sport.
Some former players and fans even urged India to boycott the match at Old Trafford.
But the game was still the first World Cup fixture to sell out – hours after tickets went on sale for the 19,000-capacity stadium – and millions more will be watching at home.
India captain Virat Kohli and his Pakistani counterpart Sarfaraz Ahmed have played it cool, saying the players are only focussed on the game – despite obviously being aware of the hype.
“As soon as we step onto the field, its professional cricket … for us it’s just another game you need to win as a team,” Kohli said at a pre-tournament captains’ session with reporters. “Eventually it’s a game of bat and ball and that’s what you need to focus on.”
Meanwhile, Pakistan’s head coach Mickey Arthur has said that the World Cup game against India on Sunday provides Pakistan players “an unbelievable opportunity to make a mark.”
Arthur told media at Old Trafford that a significant performance in the game can define the career of players and any special thing done by them would be remembered forever.
“I’m telling our players in the dressing room, you could be a hero tomorrow. Your careers are going to be defined by a moment in the game. You do something incredible tomorrow, you’ll be remembered forever,” he said.
“Our kind of mantra is how do you want to be remembered? We’ve got 15 incredible cricketers in that dressing room, and we keep stressing to them, how do you want to be remembered? You’re the class of 2019. What are they going to say about you in history? And tomorrow presents an unbelievable opportunity for these guys to really make a mark,” he added.
The Pakistan coach, however, tried to play down the hype given to Pakistan vs India encounters saying that this game offers same number of points that any other game at the tournament offers.
“There’s always pressure in any game, and these games carry exactly the same amount of points. They carry two points. Obviously, there’s a massive hype that’s created a lot of time by the media really. Our guys are prepared. We’re ready. We’re comfortable that we can get out there and perform, and we are so excited about the opportunity tomorrow,” he said.
The Pakistan coach also added that team has moved on from Champions Trophy win as it has been two years to that win now and players are focused on Sunday’s game against the arch-rivals.
He added that Pakistan team hasn’t been able to put the perfect game yet and once they play perfectly, they can beat any team in the world.
“There’s always pressure in any game, and these games carry exactly the same amount of points. They carry two points. Obviously, there’s a massive hype that’s created a lot of time by the media really. Our guys are prepared. We’re ready. We’re comfortable that we can get out there and perform, and we are so excited about the opportunity tomorrow,” he said.
Replying to a question, Arthur said that the unpredictable tag makes Pakistan an exciting team, although he doesn’t like the tag.
He also emphasised the need to improve standards of fielding in the game against India.
“Fielding is an attitude. Batting and bowling is something that you can’t really control because you’re up against somebody else. Fielding, you can control. You can control your attitude in the field,” he said.
“The message for the boys tomorrow is not to hold back. We want to leave everything out on the ground, whether that’s with bat, ball, or in the field. And if we do that, if we do that and not play a tentative game, we play a game where we take the game on, which has been our mantra for a period of time now, hopefully, it clicks and everything goes well,” Arthur highlighted.
