Update: Dawn.com invites its readers to be a part of its first ever Global Blog and share their experiences by blogging in real time.
No matter where you are, just as long as you’re tuned in to the live coverage of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 India vs Pakistan semi-final, here is your chance to provide your analysis, set the field, live commentate, share pictures and videos, predict the outcome of the match and have your say as Pakistan takes on India in what promises to be a cracking showdown.
For details visit Live: Pakistan vs India
The prospect itself is so hot that it does not require you to employ the art of phrasing and utilise your gift of gab in order to have your say, but have your say you must because its Pakistan versus India and the cricket fever doesn’t get any hotter than this! This is exactly why we at dawn.com would like to invite you to have your say and let it out your way regarding the biggest event, need I say, bigger than the World Cup final that the cricket crazy world is about to witness.
You can send us your critical analysis in the form of a blog post (blog@dawn.com) or shout out in a comment. You can also tweet at us @dawn_com or leave your comments on our Facebook page and we will feature it here along with all the other contributions from our readers. We’ll be challenging our own producers to come up with interesting content on the epic event to be held in the near future but we want you to have your say as well. Compose a song, make a webcam video cheering your team, or send us an audio visual slideshow! Do something and we’ll put it up for the world to see.
The internet has become an intense driving force in modern times as recent events have shown. Fuelled by the voices of the online population, this time around Pakistan vs India is bigger than ever! So, don’t miss out on this opportunity to have your say, your way, and let it rip. However, we do advise you, for the sake of “good sportsmanship” to refrain from the “free and frank exchanges of views on female relatives” which has always been an essential part of the India-Pakistan rivalry, as alluded to by Cricinfo.
P.S. Our friends from across the border are equal contributors to debates on our website, so let us be insightful towards content vouching India triumphing over Pakistan and not forget that as fans, what we’re really celebrating is the spirit of cricket.
P.P.S. The winner of this competition (it’s not really a competition, it’s just an opportunity for you to rant out whichever way you want) will get the chance to watch the Pakistan vs India Semi-Final of the ICC World Cup 2011 live on our competitor’s television channel!
The views expressed by the reader comments do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the Dawn Media Group.
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Featured Comments
Taimur Sikander says, “This is what Pakistan’s Interior Minister Rehman Malik had to say about the Pakistan-India semi-final on March 30: “I had given a warning yesterday (Sunday) that there should be no match fixing. This time I am watching it very closely. If any such thing happens, we will take action,” Malik told reporters in Karachi Monday.
“They should continue the practice and go to bed early, rise up according to their schedule and dedicate themselves to the game for Pakistan,” he added.
Mr Malik, we are also watching you very closely. Go to bed early, eat your cereal and focus on your job.
We’re sure it must be a tough job, picking out the right tie and handkerchief combination.
It is understood that you have since called and apologised to Pakistan’s captain, Shahid Afridi about your earlier remarks.
“A section of (the) press has twisted my statement out of context, and wrongly projected my words,” Malik posted on Twitter, Monday night.
You know what they say about those who speak too much…
P.S. The people do in fact trust the players more than they trust you, as is being said by many a Pakistani politician.”
Shagufta Naaz sent us a short piece titled “War Games”:
“‘Pakistan and India go to war in the semi-final’ screams the headline of a leading Urdu daily (incidentally, one of the same group that has been shouting itself hoarse in the pursuit of Hope for Peace). “It’s war!” say my friends as they gear up in green T-shirts (the price of which keeps rising as the date of the match draws closer). “It’s war!” state all the commentators, analysts and of course, the ubiquitous morning show hosts. Oh yes, a match between India and Pakistan can never be just that: a game between two teams; thanks to over 60 years of a very complex, painful history, any meeting in the ground is seen as yet another encounter with the enemy. It’s not just cricket, it’s war.
Excuse me, but am I the only one who finds this casual use of the ‘W’ word distasteful? Yes, winning against India is a matter of pride and honour (or so they say), more so even than winning against the Aussies, even though it was an Australian who called our captain ‘idiotic.’ What would our reaction have been if an Indian had said that I wonder?
But to come back to the impending semi-final, feelings are running high on both sides of the border — and even further ashore. Students studying abroad report that fights between Pakistani and Indian students erupt daily on campuses, even before the two sides have come together in the ground. These are kids, many of whom may not even have seen their ‘homeland.’ Certainly none of them lived through the horrors of Partition, the trials of the ’65 and ’71 wars or perhaps even the tense days of Kargil. So where is all this anger coming from?
Perhaps all Pakistanis are born with an anti-India gene; perhaps Indians too have an anti-Pakistan gene; and perhaps venting this anger at a cricket match is better than taking it out in a more deadly manner. But just for the record — war is about death, destruction and unimaginable misery. A cricket match is about fun, excitement and, if we’re lucky, a reason to celebrate. Let’s try to keep the difference clear.”
Comments on Facebook
Chinmay Sharma says, “Many ppl have said that this is just a game but lets be reasonable it is actually a war on sports field. India and Pakistan are playing after 4 years. It doesn’t mean that ppl will kill each other but its a kind of satisfying frustration of an uneasy relationship like tom and jerry. So far but so close.”
Muhammad Hasan says, “Clash of rivals, but with manners and ethics. 
bats not guns, balls not artilary crackers.”
Raahil Faraaz says, “There is huge excitement over the match and we are all looking forward to a great game of cricket that will be a victory for sport. It gives me great pleasure to invite all pakistani to visit Mohali and join us and the millions of fans from our two countries to watch the match.”
Zia Ullah Akhunzada says, “It ll be more than a cricket match.Pressure will be on both teams.A great chance for Pakistan to take the 1996 revenge.”
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Lets not hype the match so much, that it becomes an ego issue for both countries…Passions were high in 80s and 90s…but now its not..Lets not create it again.
We all should enjoy the game as a WC semi final for our respective countries and nothing else
Are we having a game or a party. I’ll quill for a ticket.
This has been a very entertaining world cup climaxed by the semifinal game between India and Pakistan.
India has stronger batting and expereinced players. Pakistan has better bowling particularly spin attack. If boom boom has a good day particularly with batting Pakistan will win. If Sehwag has a good opening partnership India will win. In addition winnng the toss will be important and could also tilt the game in favor of the toss winning team.
This could be the superbowl of Cricket but still only a game and nothing to do with national pride or honors. it shoud be a bridge of undertstanding . I am sure that the players will show sportmen spirit and treat it as such.
This is an excellent opportunity to view cricket at its best. In India the Pakistani cricket team is viewed as professional young and balanced outfit, which was able to beat Australia by a comfortable margin. I am sure the Pakistani team will get a rousing welcome and cheers during the match.
Viewers from Pakistan who come to watch the match will have a good opportunity not only to see good cricket but also to see life in general in India. They may be surprised to find that in India we do not teach children to hate Pakistan and generally people are more concerned with getting along with the economic aspects of life. Also that religion plays little or no part in daily lives of the common people and Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs and Christians all live and work in peace.
The nascent peace process of having open borders is perhaps only way to move forward. Other irritants will automatically fade into the background. The coming of the Pakistani PM is a good portent and should pave the way for better understanding and trust.
Good cricket and diplomacy can go hand in hand. Both countries could be the real winners.
It doesn’t matter if INDIA wins OR PAK. I want peace between the two nations to win.
I know how pak people welcomed our side in their homeland when india played them last time in pak. Even though pak lost the 1day series pak people reacted humbly, which is good for the game. Its high time that we must form United States of SubContinent (USS) [Ind,pak,ban,nep,sri,butan,tibet] and leave in peace there after. Good luck both of the teams.
India Pakistan game is important , wish India wins if not Pakistan should win the world cup. I am happy that the arrogant aussies are out.
Shoaib has to play. There is no other bowler Sachin is as scared of as Shoaib. He may be a great batsman, but he cannot face true pace, and, ever since 1999, Shoaib has had the better of Sachin (barring 2003, where he was dropped off Shoaib’s bowling, and eventually got out to Shoaib). This will be the last time these two will face each other, so I am looking forward to one of the greatest bowlers and batsmen of the last decade playing each other one last time.
I hope the Indo-Pak fans remember that it is a game after all (and a gentleman’s game) and not get violent or resort to cheap provocations if their favourite team doesn’t win. Secondly, I hope this match goes a long way in building better Indo-Pak ties. Lastly and very importantly, I really really really hope there are no security issues either in Mohali or in Mumbai.
let the best team Pakistan win
as of now it seems paki surely have an edge over indians in bowling , india has only one strike bowler in form of zaheer whereas pakis have 2 in form of afridi and gul. but this indian batting lineup is currently the best in the world and pakistani batting lacks that kind of depth, form and experience. i think misbah and younis khan would be key batsmen for pakis. surely pakis can take heart from the fact mohali wicket is more bowler friendly. lets hope game is of top quality and better team prevails.
Pakistan will squash India like a bug
Really ? Lets wait and see you will get an answer for the arrogant thinking
from last 10 years, Pakistan is always under pressure against India, Mainly Sehwag,Yuvraaj, Dhoni. Cricket is such a boring game, and brings nothing to India. Indian should more care about opening F1 race in Delhi, which brings India to major economies and watched by countries like UK,USA,France,German, Australia. Not Pakistan,Sri Lanka, Bangladesh.
Hi ,
We in the subcontinent are all passionate about cricket . The countries who promoted this game 100 years ago might have never thought that we from the subcontinent will master this game . Being an Asian I feel very proud that atleast 3 teams from the subcontinent has gone in the semi-finals. It does not matter who wins as long as the cup remains in Asia. The way we love cricket we hope our teams keep the spirit of the sport alive and give us the best ever entertainment for the INDIA / PAK semi-finals and play it like a gentlemens game with no slurring on the pitch.
The visit of Indian prime minister to watch semi final and his invitation to Pakistani heads is unnecessary, it will produce extra presure on players and will spoil the beautiful game of cricket.
They could do their politics in their offices.
As an Indian, I want Pakistan to win. Why? because India has IPL, ICL, superstars and what not, but I miss those old days when Pakistan was a full blown fierce spine chilling opponent against India. Just to start a spark of hope that may bring back those Shohaib akhthar, Imran Khan golden days..
All sports are not a game anymore.It is profession.The team which has good planning and perfect execution in the field is the winner.We have balance side consist of good fast bowlers,best spinners,sound batsmen, good slogers and fielders.Our appearent weakness is Wicketkeeper.We also lack in temperment.We have seen that Indian batting can be collapse under pressure.So we have to create situation by resticting their opners and their hitters.We have bowling strength which can easily do that.Bowlers have to bowl within the wickets,to the weakness of batsman and according to field.Our batsman have to stay on wicket,no across the line or predetermined shots and play according to situation. Captain responsibility to use his bowlers and batsmen according to situation.He should also consult senior players in pressure situation.Razzaq can be effective if use inteligently in batting and bowling.
I am not a crazy Cricket Freak but on Mar 30th, Emotions will run high, Heartbeats will become louder, Adrenaline will pump again, when the Gladiators in Green will step in the Colosseum at Mohali…. With hands shaking and Teeth grinding, I shall brace myself for the mother of all battles, the final before the final, the Clash of the Titans…
Im looking forward to watching the match together with my Indian friends here in Stockholm. Win or lose, I hope we get a cracking of a match and nobody gets hurt.
Shoaib can’t play. We should think of Tendulkar, playing his last World Cup. We can’t ruin his final days by including Shoaib in our line-up and seeing Tendulkar ‘rested’ or ‘injured’ for the match.
Haha funny comment…Get into record books and have a look at what sachin achieved and watch how Shoaib was treated in WC 2003
ya pls dont spoil last match of shoaib akhtars life….and if sehwag and sachin hammer in first few hours then he will die in his room and even cdnt go pakistan…….so pls spare his life….
Well in my opinion Pakistan team is much weaker and much inexeperienced compared to Indian Team. It will be a big ask from Pakistan team to beat India, unless they play really out of their skin without any pressure. India also has an advantage of home ground and home crowd, which is also a plus for them. So if Pakistan will be able to beat India, it will be India playing really bad. The crowd should not be carried away with the match as at the end of the day it is just a match and nothing more. It will just give us a sense of pride for may be one night or even less. Next day will be office so back to work and life move on.
Being an Indian wishing the repeatition of earlier WC encounter. Sachin hitting Shoab for sixes, Sehwag smashing Pak bowlers out of park, Bhajji Jaheer Ashmit knocking the bails of Pak batsmen. Come on India “De ghuma ke……”
I hope and pray for the victory of Pakistan’s cricket team, but we should not let a game get our emotions
out of control, we must learn to be a rational and open minded people to presant ourselves as a civil nation, if our team wins, we must be gracious, if it loses, just remember its just a game. Good luck to both teams
Dont think there is hysteria over this match. yet anothe cricket match. one team will win. thats about it..
Indian performance against Australia is NOT a big deal. Australians are not playing upto the mark this time. May be it has got something to do with Ricky Ponting captainship. Otherwise Australia is a Very strong team considering the most world cup wins. while Indians are cheap players usually involve a lot of drama. You can already hear stuff like this from Indian “We don’t want to win world cup but we will not let Pakistan win it either”. Is this a healthy attitude? Ofcourse, not.
As far as Pakistan is concerned. Pakistani team has played VERY WELL. Performance of Pakistani team against the Indians has been at par. With all the stuff going on in Pakistan and her national team, Pakistanis had been very disappointed with the cricket team. This team has no other choice but to spruce up its performance to uplift the spirit of Pakistan. They will SURELY WIN.
But I warn Pakistanis, that India WILL play cheap tricks to sabotage that victory. Shiv Sena can do anything like this.
I don’t care who will win the match, but its responsibility of us (Indians and Pakistanis) to support their team in their thick and thin. Whoever loses, give them respect, to letting you give privilege to watch Semi-finals.
I hope both the fans will BEHAVE no matter what the result are!
Hey, dear friends & fans, What’s this hullabaloo about who is going to win this match? India? Pakistan? It’s the great game of cricket and this should be enjoyed thoroughly. I will definitely cheer for all the fours and sixes from whomever it come. Jai Ho Cricket!!!!!