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29 March 2024

Indians in the UAE celebrate World Cup win

Published
By Bindu Suresh Rai

It was 2am and the windows still reflected the glow of firecrackers that reverberated on the tinted glass.

For many sleep-deprived denizens, the lack of soundproofing in residential neighbourhoods signalled an even later night than usual as the resounding cheers and chants of India’s stupendous win over arch rivals Pakistan had the city gripped in a fever pitch; but few complained.

The festive mood appeared contagious as impromptu motorcades trawled the streets of Dubai, with car horns blaring and music booming, while others simply poured out of their homes, embellishing the Indian flag in all its glory.

Thus is the power of cricket for its Asian fans.

“I still can’t believe we won!” exclaimed 17-year-old Shoaib Ali Khan, a Dubai resident who was part of the street parade of 50-odd people behind BurJuman Centre. “After witnessing India’s batting order collapse in the second half of the game, all of us were worried that we would go the South Africa route. But surprisingly, our bowlers showed great discipline, while our fielding showed a remarkable improvement.”

While young Khan hurried back to join in the “Jai Hind” cheers that cried “Long Live India”, they weren’t the only ones singing into the night.

Many Indian taxi drivers had pulled over to indulge in impromptu ‘cutting chai’ and biscuit parties.

“We couldn’t watch the match, but we heard everything on the radio. You have no idea what a happy occasion this is for all of us,” said Ravindra Singh, a 38-year-old cab driver. “I just wish I had a chance to be in Mohali (match venue in India) and take my seven-year-old son to watch the match at the stadium. It would have made him so happy.”
 
Work no more

Many fans had taken the day off work yesterday, using every excuse in the book, and then some, to make their way to watch, arguably, the game of the century.

“The last two days I have been pretending to be unwell and finally called in sick in the morning, so I could head over to my friend’s house at noon,” said 24-year-old Anita Shah (name changed for obvious reasons), who works at a local bank. “I don’t care if my bosses know, because I still wouldn’t have missed this match for the world.”

Others were more honest about their plight, with many, including this reporter, simply requesting the day off to go catch the clash without attempting to work when the mind was in Mohali.

Johny Matthew, a manager at one of the leading companies had told Emirates 24|7 earlier: “Ideally, I would have preferred the management to declare half-a-day’s holiday. I have done so for all those who are reporting to me. Because there is no point in people being present in the office while their mind is elsewhere. Rather they can return home and enjoy the match.”

Meanwhile, Danube Building Materials’ Rizwan Sajan, gave his employees the day off. The company said: “We as a company are full of cricket buffs. I want my staff to enjoy the game. I have even thrown a party for almost 100 of my friends. It’s going to be a great match and either way we are going to celebrate.” 
 
Profitable night

Bars and pubs across the city made a killing as people poured into tightly cramped spaces to catch a glimpse of their favourite team, even paying a high premium to enter.

Ramee Royal’s Time Café, which had three giant projector screens, along with numerous other plasma TVs across their popular bar, was heaving with over 600 people even after management decided to charge people Dh100 entry or Dh2,500 for a table.

Said bar manager, Dominic Mathews: “We have maintained a free entry policy for all the other matches, but the India vs Pakistan clash is a special one. Plus, as a business enterprise, we have to cover our bases and make a profit too.

“When I saw the receipts of the night post the India-Australia match last week, I was shocked because we were packed to maximum capacity even then but few had actually purchased anything. They had just come in to watch the match and leave.

“Charging a Dh100 cover covers our bases that we will not go into losses.”
 
The bookies controversy

Perhaps the one thing that marred India’s win was the bookie controversies that sprung up a few days before the match when an Indian television string operation indicated that politicians were in on a scandal that would see Pakistan win the clash.

This was followed by a string of SMSes that included a ‘Wikiliks’ report saying: “Ind-Pak Match Fixed as under (see all secret matters on wikiliks_matchsecrets.com)

1) India will bat first
2) India will be 105 for two wickets and then will make 270 to 273 runs
3) Virendar Sehwag will be out in first five overs (he has been already paid Rs230 million in USB Swiss bank)
4) Sachin Tendulkar 95-98 out
5) India will win by just one run for which Rs2.51 billion paid to Pak [sic]”

While half of the above simply did not occur during the match, most importantly the host team won by 29 runs and not one.

Another SMS was an alleged bookie update that stated: “India will bat first score over 260, 3-4 wickets fall within the first 25 overs; Pakistan will cruise to 100, then lose two quick wickets; at 150 they will be five down and crumble and lose by a margin of over 20 runs [sic].”

Said 24-year-old Mamta Usgaonkar: “I stopped reading such messages after a while because all it does is play with your head and frankly, I wanted to enjoy the match for what it represents and not indulge in such mind games.”