Lahore: The Pakistani nation has defeated the monster of terrorism defiantly as thousands of citizens thronged to Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium to watch the final match of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) despite the fact that country is plagued by a fresh wave of terrorism.
Cricket lovers from all parts of the country were seen in front of the Gaddafi Stadium throughout Sunday to watch the final match of the second season of the PSL that was to be played between Quetta Gladiators and Peshawar Zalmi amid tight security.
The passionate cricket spectators reached Lahore from Peshawar, Quetta, Islamabad, Karachi, Faisalabad, Multan, Muzaffarabad and other parts of the country to support cricket that was on a continuous decline since the attack on Sri Lankan team some eight years ago.
Ali Hasan, who came all the way from Hyderabad, told Pakistan Today that he came here to watch the final despite the fact that the team of his province [Sindh] could not reach the finals. “I will support Quetta Gladiators because the captain of this team (Sarfaraz) belongs to Karachi,” Hasan said, who was confident that the international cricket will soon be revived with the successful culmination of the second season of the PSL.
“We received overwhelming reception in Lahore and we are also ready to host the people of Lahore in the third season as the final will be held in Karachi next year,” Muhammad Umair said, who came from Karachi.
He further added that he faced immense difficulties in purchasing the ticket and urged the management of the PSL to chalk out a better plan for tickets from the next season. “Being a student, it was very difficult for me to purchase ticket worth 8 thousand and I sold my mobile phone to buy the ticket,” he said.
Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan also appreciated the participation of spectators in droves; it may be mentioned here that it was same Imran Khan who was criticising the government’s decision of holding the final in Pakistan.
“It is really sad for us that Shahid Afridi will not be able to entertain us because of his injury,” said Jibran Khan, who came from Peshawar. He was of the view that it is a good sign for Pakistan that foreign players are here to add to the glory of magnificent Gaddafi Stadium. We don’t need to worry about a large number of security officials deployed here because extraordinary situations demand extraordinary measures, he said, while adding that more than 13 thousand police officials were deputed at the London Olympics of 2012 for people’s safety.
Chaudhry Abdul Jalil, famously known as ‘Chacha Cricket’, was the centre of attention of the people coming to the Gaddafi Stadium and every cricket lover was trying to take a selfie with Chacha Cricket.
Talking to Pakistan Today, Chacha said that the people of Pakistan have rightly proved today that they are peaceful citizens and they truly want the revival of international cricket in Pakistan. “I request all the international players and teams to visit Pakistan because Pakistan is a safe country and our people are passionate about this game,” Chacha said, who has visited almost all the countries along with the Pakistani cricket team.
