The Sports Connection

The Asia Cup has just started and cricket fever is in the air. During Pakistan’s opening match in the series, I was intrigued to see how many of my Pakistani acquaintances were glued to their TV sets, constantly updating their Twitter feeds and Facebook statuses. Wins and losses do not keep the Pakistani cricket fan away from the game!

Of course, cricket is not just a ‘sport’ in Pakistan – it has become part of the DNA of every Pakistani!  It is not just on dedicated cricket grounds you see the game being played. Wherever I go, I see people playing cricket – on the streets, inside residential compounds, on terraces, in parking slots and on every spot where there is at least 20 square feet of empty space.  Man or woman, old or young, everyone likes to play.

While in Pakistan it is cricket, in the UK it is football (or soccer as I had to learn to call in during my last posting in the US!) that is our national passion.  I am a Nottingham forest fan myself.  Perhaps not as famous these days as Manchester United, Liverpool, Arsenal (incidentally now the most popular team in China), or Chelsea, but equally illustrious over the decades.  As an ardent supporter of the England team, I cannot wait for this year’s World Cup to kick off in Brazil.  I see similar enthusiasm in here Pakistan for the forthcoming Twenty20 World Cup.

There are so many strong connections between Pakistan and the UK, and anyone following the under–19 Cricket World Cup or Asia Cup 2014, will understand that sport is one of these. We worked very closely with the Olympic and Paralympic Associations of Pakistan in the run up to London 2012 Games. Together we campaigned to encourage aspiring Pakistani sportsmen to take this opportunity of becoming part of the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic experience.  Our International Inspiration programme, run by the British Council, is creating opportunities to participate in sport for more than 12 million people in 20 countries around the world, including working in hundreds of schools in Pakistan.

This week, we supported a cricket match played in Islamabad between the Diplomatic Cricket Association of Commonwealth countries, and the Pakistan Cricket Board President’s All Star Invitation Team, led by its Chairman, Najam Sethi.  I very much enjoyed watching the match and talking to Najam Sethi, who seemed pretty confident about the performance of the Pakistan Cricket Team in the Asia Cup ahead.  This year in June, the UK will also welcome athletes from the world over to the 2014 Commonwealth Games, the largest multi-sport event ever held in Scotland.

Our love for sport is one of our many deep rooted connections that unify the people of our two nations beyond all diversities in culture.  I wish the Pakistani players the best of luck for the match against India tomorrow.