Whattay match...!!!

I’m probably more against the blatant mutilation of common, respectable English words than the next person is. However, when it comes to some things, the expression of something too awesome, “WHAT A XYZ” just falls short. Which is where one must bring in “WHATTAY XYZ”? Also because “WHATTAY” is more fun to say, atleast to me 

And last nights match, hands down deserves to be acknowledged as “WHATTAY match”. Yes the capitals generally entail exaggeration and literal shouting, but shouting was one of the reactions exhibited while watching it.

Once again…WHATTAY MATCH!

The match…ufff…. It got my undivided attention once I got home from nanis last night, and that was about the time Afridi was batting. And then Afridi was out. Khiar, to quote my own Fb status; Afridi tou aanay jaanay waali cheez hai. The skipper is the most entertaining cricketer hands down, and while volatility no doubt adds to it, he really isn’t the most reliable man out there. Yousuf and  Hafeez, *salutes*. Zulqurnain, MARRY ME. The other dude, I love you too. 

The steady game, the tilting of the scales from our favor to theirs and then back to us again. It was a slow dance ending in an extremely shattering climax. The dismissals of Yousuf and Razzaq were the points where I d braced myself for a defeat. Then there was that dropped catch, which my mom brands as Gods hand in this. Amazing how cricket can do that too, the sheer unpredictability of the match, reawakens your belief in God (or fate luck, or chance), you’re not in control, HE is. And of course the time when I went, “God if we win this match I will fast tomorrow (which we did and I did fast, but that’s a different story)”, another ode to the beauty of Pakistani cricket.

 Kudos to the youngsters, the over throws by the South Africans, LOVED THEM, the expressions on the S Africans faces, well, WHATTAY EXPRESSION, each one of them 

Yes we misfielded too, and there was often an expletive uttered over our performance, but we made up for it, in winning. 

When it comes to cricket, I’m a finicky lover. Football, while I may play it (skill level debatable) does not come close to what I feel for cricket. No I do not follow every match like Bilal does. However I have a general know about whatever our national teams up to and the current series and match. After the spot fixing controversy, yes I was disappointed and felt extremely let down by my team, nonetheless there is something magical about when the men in green are in action, or lack thereof and I’m mesmerized. Half a dozen let downs, shoddy fielding and mismanagement occur and then there is one win, so spectacular that in an instant I forget all and the prodigal is in the reddest of my hearts. What was present at home while my family was watching, and on the spectator’s faces, was pure, raw emotion. It was the Pakistani people more animated, in a positive way, than I have seen us in a long long time.

Cricket is an integral part of the Pakistani citizen’s national psyche. For me, it invokes the kind of patriotism few other things do. People say cricket and politics are our national sports, and both are a display of national spirit and human nature, and our team, whether we are always behind them or not, represents us. 

Yes, Afridi's kiss isnt from yesterdays match, but WHATTAY moment in its own right :P