Shahid Afridi Blames Indian Media for War Like Hype to India v Pakistan Semi Final

As the Indian government is taking no chances and deploying security personnel in Mohali as if India were under attack, the Pakistan captain feels that there is too much being made out of the India v Pakistan ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 semi final encounter thereby, leading to pressure as if it were no sport but two countries at work.

security in mohali

Shahid Afridi is certainly warning the Pakistan cricketers against falling for the hype surrounding the India v Pakistan match. In his opinion, all the media attention is blowing out of proportion the real context which is that it is a cricket match at the end of the day and someone is going to end up the winner and loser, only the winner had one more step to go and that is the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 final.

The Pakistan captain is concerned that the players could get caught up in the hype and start to believe prejudices as well as half truths. The danger with that is that the cricketers could stifle their style to which they have approached the assignment thus far. He does not want the confidence in the dressing room rattled by what is happening beyond the cricket field.

Afridi has instead chosen the confines of the dressing room, the cricket field and the hotel room rather than give in to the atmosphere around him and the sights and sounds that could distract the team.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the Indian captain, has also stated that the Indian cricket team is insulated by all the hoopla happening around their team so as not to get carried away but instead concentrate on the task ahead, which is beating Pakistan to get to the final.

However, while the captains are hitting the right notes, it would be hard to imagine how the teams can escape the chaos following this historic encounter because they know the kind of passion that drives fans across borders for an India v Pakistan match as also, the kind of pressure the players feel themselves, pepped up for such an encounter where they find their own adrenaline flowing more than usual.

One would think this was a war without nuclear weapons not only by the kind of security arrangements surrounding this match but also, by the many dimensions to which this match is being taken out of context to touch upon the political thaw between nations, the resumption of dialogue following the 26/11 terrorist attacks. In that context, the pressure is immense on both countries, and the pressure to perform on the cricket field is a whole other ball game.