Tale of six people among one lakh Indians who boost Pakistani at Narendra Modi Stadium

Ahmedabad: When about one lakh thousand highly charged cricket lovers were passionately behind the Indian team at Narendra Modi Stadium on Saturday, only six were there to pump the Pakistani team.

As the Indian government is being criticized for not issuing visas to Pakistani fans for this ICC World Cup match, the BCCI and Gujarat Cricket Association made a pleasant but quiet arrangement to boost the Pakistan cricket team. BCCI stationed a four-member team across the stadium to waive green flag, writing Pakistan ki Shan on it, after every four and six guest batsmen hit.

Interestingly, the event management company, DNA, strictly instructed team members not to speak with the media or reveal any details about the arrangement. One of the DNA officials was sitting next to them to keep things under control.

These four young boys, along with two US-based Pakistani cricket lovers, were the only force in the stadium who were boosting Pakistani players throughout the inning.

The Indian government decided not to provide visas to Pakistani citizens for the ICC World Cup. Even some Pakistani journalists received their visas just a day before the India-Pakistan match.

Mohammad Uzair used to play club cricket in Pakistan. Now he is settled in the American city of Houston. Uzair, along with his friend Asif Sayed, were watching the match of the World Cup from the stands.

"It was a bit challenging getting an Indian visa," Uzair told NewsDrum. "I got my visa just before the match. But I am excited to be here. I am here for the first time in India. It is a very big crowd. I am happy the Pakistani team started well. But it is too early to say anything about any possible result.

"Experience in Ahmedabad is good, but getting in here was a challenge," said Sayed. "There were a lot of security checks, but after we got in, the atmosphere was electric. I should not say I faced any problems getting my visa, but it was late.

A day before this epic encounter, Pakistani captain Babar Azam had said, "I think Ahmedabad will only be blue." So, if Pakistani fans were allowed, it would have been good for us. So, they would support us. But to be honest, when we arrived in Hyderabad, I felt there were a lot of supporters of the Pakistan team, and I expect that here, and we are looking forward to the match."