2011 Cricket World Cup Semifinal: India v Pakistan

Main article: 2011 Cricket World Cup

2011 Cricket World Cup Semifinal

Event	2011 Cricket World Cup
India Pakistan 260/9 231 50 overs 49.5 overs
Date	30 March 2011
Venue	Punjab Cricket Association Stadium, Mohali
Man of the Match	Sachin Tendulkar
Umpires	Simon Taufel and Ian Gould[1]

The 2nd semifinal of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 was played between the arch-rivals India and Pakistan at Punjab Cricket Association Stadium, Mohali on 30 March 2011. India won the match by 29 runs and qualified for the 2011 Cricket World Cup Final. India won the Toss and elected to bat first and made 260 runs in 50 overs for 9 wickets. Pakistan though with a good start failed to make up to the score with just 231 allout in 49.5 overs resulting in the victory of India over Pakistan^[2] and leading their way towards the final of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 against Sri Lanka where they beat Sri Lanka and won the World Cup. The match holds utmost historical significance because of the hype created around the match since both the teams made their way towards the semifinal. The match was even equated to the War^[3] and it experienced the presence of Celebrities, Diplomats and Prime Ministers from both the Nations alongside the huge crowd at the stadium. The Life for more than a billion people across India and Pakistan came to a standstill during the semi-final match.^[4][5][6] Three people including a Pakistani actor all belonging to Pakistan died out of shock after Pakistan lost the match.^[7][8] This match has been perceived by Pakistani former cricketers and fans as a great let down from Pakistan due to their weak fielding and batting despite good talent shown previously from the Pakistani captain and players in the 2011 ICC cup.^[5] The match drew 67.3 million viewers in India alone, and an estimated 150 million viewers worldwide.^[9]

Background

Pakistan on 23 March 2011 beat West Indies in a Quarter-final and subsequently entered into the Semifinal. Since then there has been an expectation for a possible upcoming India Versus Pakistan Semifinal. As expected India confirmed its place in the semifinal by beating Australia in the 2nd Quarter-final on 24 March 2011. Since then there has been heated discussions and expectations from the people of both the countries regarding who is going to win the match.^[10][11]

The Rivalry

See also: India versus Pakistan cricket rivalry

India and Pakistan have been the traditional arch rivals since the Partition of India in various fronts. The countries have fought Three Wars against each other. The same Battlefield rivalry always reflected on the Cricket Stadium throughout the history since the first international cricket match between the two countries in 1952.This dispute has affected both diplomatic and political relations, and the same animosity can be felt on the field. A match between the two countries is often equated with war. Often a political or diplomatic tension has a fallout on the cricket relations between the two countries including suspension of cricket tours to the other country.

The Match

Initially Pre-match rain in Mohali threatened the India-Pak semi final but however things became clear after the Meteorological Department assured the non-possibility of the rain during the match.^[12] India won the Toss and elected to bat first and made 260 runs in 50 overs for 9 wickets. Sachin Tendulkar scored 85 runs resulting in the considerably decent score of India. He was awarded the Man of the Match for his effort. Pakistan on the other hand though with a good start failed to maintain consistency and were limited to just 231 runs in 49.5 overs allout. India won the match and confirmed their place in the Finals.^[11]

30 March 2011 14:30 (D/N) Scorecard	India  260/9 (50 overs)	v	Pakistan 231 (49.5 overs)	India won by 29 runs Punjab Cricket Association Stadium, Mohali, Chandigarh Umpires: Ian Gould (Eng) and Simon Taufel (Aus) Player of the match: Sachin Tendulkar (Ind)
	Sachin Tendulkar 85 (115) Wahab Riaz 5/46 (10 overs)		Misbah-ul-Haq 56 (76) Ashish Nehra 2/33 (10 overs)
India won the toss and elected to bat

The Effects

Tickets for the semi-final match had been sold out in Mohali for days, and most businesses and offices in both countries were closed during the play.^[13] Governments in almost all the states and provinces of both the nations declared official Holidays on 30 March in view of this match.^[13] Thousands of screens were put in public places across both the nations and Television stores experienced increased sales of Television sets.The life for more than a billion people across India and Pakistan came to a standstill during the match. Cricket Diplomacy has been the positive perception from both the countries to strengthen the relationships between the two nations in the time of chaos after the 2008 Mumbai attacks which further deteriorated the already existing tussle between the two countries. Prime Minister of India Manmohan Singh used this opportunity and invited his Pakistani counterpart Yousuf Raza Gilani to watch the match with him at Mohali. Subsequently Gilani accepted the offer and agreed to watch the match with Singh.^[14][15] Victory Venkatesh, Aamir Khan, Priety Zinta, Vivek Oberoi were among the numerous celebrities present in the stadium during the match along with the massive cheering crowd.^[16] After the victory of India Celebrations erupted throughout India and fans across the country cheered throughout the night.^[17][18] Three Pakistan citizens, including an actor Liaquat Soldier died out of shock after Pakistan lost the match. Another person was killed and 50 others were injured in aerial firings during the match in Karachi.^{[19][20][21][22]}

See also

Cricket portal

• Cricket Diplomacy

References

1. ^ "Taufel - Gould to Umpire India - Pakistan semi-final". Thesportscampus.com. 2011-03-27. http://www.thesportscampus.com/2011032711284/news-bytes/taufel-gould-to-umpire-india-pakistan-semi-final. Retrieved 2011-09-27. 
2. ^ "India vs Pakistan, 2nd Semi-Final ICC World Cup 2011". http://iccworld-cup2011.blogspot.com/2011/03/2nd-semi-final-india-vs-pakistan-mohali.html. 
3. ^ "India Wins Semi-Final World Cup Cricket Match Against Pakistan | News | English". Voanews.com. 2011-03-30. http://www.voanews.com/english/news/India-Wins-Semi-Final-World-Cup-Cricket-Match-Against-Pakistan-118924484.html. Retrieved 2011-09-27. 
4. ^ India-Wins-Semi-Final-World-Cup-Cricket-Match-Against-Pakistan
5. ^ ^{a b} pakistan-india-cricket-war-semi-final
6. ^ Sports. "Why India will win, lose or tie the WC semi-final - 1". Sports.in.msn.com. http://sports.in.msn.com/cricket/2011CricketWorldCup/article.aspx?cp-documentid=5086599. Retrieved 2011-09-27. 
7. ^ "Heartbreak in Pakistan, three die over defeat". Ndtv.com. 2011-03-31. http://www.ndtv.com/article/world/heartbreak-in-pakistan-three-die-over-defeat-95531. Retrieved 2011-09-27. 
8. ^ "One killed, 45 wounded in aerial firings in Pak during WC semi-final match against India - Thaindian News". Thaindian.com. 2011-03-31. http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/south-asia/one-killed-45-wounded-in-aerial-firings-in-pak-during-wc-semi-final-match-against-india_100520335.html. Retrieved 2011-09-27. 
9. ^ "Another record? 68 million watched World Cup final - Times Of India". Articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com. 2011-04-04. http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-04-04/india/29379894_1_indo-pak-semi-final-viewership-audience-measurement-agency. Retrieved 2011-09-27. 
10. ^ Scorecard
11. ^ ^{a b} Scorecard
12. ^ prematch-rain-threatens-indiapak-semi-final
13. ^ ^{a b} "Mohali turns into a fortress : Sports: News India Today". Indiatoday.intoday.in. 2011-03-30. http://indiatoday.intoday.in/site/Video/133793/44/india-vs-pakistan-security-raised-ahead-of-semi-final-match-in-mohali.html. Retrieved 2011-09-27. 
14. ^ pakistan-prime-minister-yousuf-raja-gilani-arrives-in-chandigarh
15. ^ "'Cricket brings India Pak together' : Sports: News India Today". Indiatoday.intoday.in. 2011-03-30. http://indiatoday.intoday.in/site/Video/133816/44/india-vs-pakistan-india-to-play-semi-final-match-against-pakistan-in-mohali.html. Retrieved 2011-09-27. 
16. ^ celebrities-cheer-team-india-for-semi-final-match-in-mohali
17. ^ frenzied-celebration-erupt-after-india-win
18. ^ PTI (2011-03-31). "India (Ind) vs Pakistan (Pak): Frenzied celebration erupt after India win". Timesofindia.indiatimes.com. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/cricket/cricket-world-cup-2011/news/Frenzied-celebration-erupt-after-India-win/articleshow/7830759.cms. Retrieved 2011-09-27. 
19. ^ heartbreak in pakistan three die over defeat
20. ^ anger-disappointment-reign-in-pakistan-after-world-cup-loss
21. ^ one-killed-45-wounded-in-aerial-firings-in-pak-during-wc-semi-final-match-against-india
22. ^ 50-injured-in-aerial-firing-in-Karachi