Time to bring back cricket to Pakistan
PAKISTAN has been out of bounds for nearly all national teams since the 2009 bus attack on the Sri Lankan side but two English cricketers have ignored those warnings and spent time playing and training there.
And both are well aware of just how important it is that Pakistan’s next generation of cricket lovers are given the opportunity to watch their heroes play in the flesh on home soil.
Former England under-19 skipper and Yorkshire allrounder, Azeem Rafiq, spent part of this winter training in Karachi, the city of his birth.
Bilal Shafayat, meanwhile, played for four seasons in Pakistan’s domestic First-Class competition, for both Habib Bank and the National Bank of Pakistan, despite Home Office warnings over the security situation in the country.
Both have said they would have few qualms about returning.
“People are optimistic about international cricket, particularly after the PSL (Pakistan Super League) final returned to Lahore in March,” says Rafiq. “The world saw the event and it was well done and well policed.
“I was there in the winter and you can see that the country as a whole is crying out for international sport, not just international cricket, to return. They need something to aim for.”
After an eight-year touring absence, during which time only Zimbabwe have played cricket in the country – during a brief 12-day trip in May 2015 – it’s little surprise that there are fears over the ability of cricket to maintain its traditional popularity.
Rafiq, for example, tells The Cricket Paper that when he grew up in the city, there would be impromptu games of cricket on almost every street in Karachi.
Security concerns, coupled with a huge surge in the popularity of football, thanks in part to the widespread screening of the Premier League, means that cricket is no longer the most common activity for kids in the country’s main cities.
And the Champions Trophy victory can only do so much to change that trend.
“You see the young kids in Pakistan now and I’m not sure that cricket is the number one sport anymore,” he says.“They haven’t grown up seeing their heroes or getting autographs off those players. I don’t think the people there have given up hope but ultimately international cricket needs to return there.
“Did I have any hesitation in going back there? Not at all. When I went back there for the first time in 13 years a few years ago, I was wary, mainly because of how the situation there has been portrayed in the mainstream media. Once I was out there I didn’t feel scared, actually I felt pretty safe to be honest.
“With any of these situations you do feel you’re safe until it happens to you. There’s always a thought in the back of your mind but the world we live in now, as seen by the last few weeks in this country, you’re not really safe anywhere. I personally hope to be back there this winter, playing First- Class domestic cricket there.”
That’s something that Shafayat did for four years up until 2014, when he played his final match for Habib Bank. He travelled there in the immediate aftermath of the Lahore terror attack but was undeterred by the worsening security situation.
“Zimbabwe have gone there and shown that it’s possible (to tour the country safely),” said Shafayat.“Yes, it’s not the easiest place to go out and live, but there are so many beautiful, quiet places out there. Then there are places that there are concerns about in terms of safety and that hasn’t changed.
“I hope that any return isn’t a short-lived compromise.When cricket returns I want it return forever.Yes, it might not happen now, but if the government and cricket board continue to work then hopefully it will happen. The time just has to be right.”
The Champions Trophy has once again shown the depth of the country’s talent pool, with the likes of Hasan Ali and Fakhar Zaman playing a key role in a first major tournament victory since 1992. That will go some way to helping cricket fight back against football and other attractions in the country but Rafiq argues that there’s still plenty of hard work ahead.
“The growth of football is partly to do with the fact that more and more people are spending more time indoors watching games in England and Spain on satellite TV,” says Rafiq. “That’s as much to do with security as anything else.
“But the success of the PSL and now the Champions Trophy could make a real difference. For Pakistan to shine consistently on the biggest stage then cricket needs to return to the country, sooner rather than later.”