Fans on both sides of the border, India and Pakistan, can barely contain their excitement as the blockbuster T20 World Cup showdown, seen by many as the centerpiece of the tournament, begins.
“Cricket needs an India-Pakistan match – whether you like it or not,” said Prakash Goel, a 42-year-old businessman in New Delhi.
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“It brings money, fans and most importantly excitement. I know the recent games have been one-sided but Pakistan cricket has picked up.”
The two nuclear-armed neighbors, considered one of the fiercest rivalries in international sport, have not played a bilateral series in more than a decade and have only met in global or regional championships.
The T20 summit, currently co-hosted by Sri Lanka and India, has been overshadowed by political wrangling for weeks.
Bangladesh were kicked out of the tournament after refusing to play against India and the Pakistan government subsequently ordered its team to skip the much-anticipated Group A match as a show of support for Dhaka.
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The match was cleared after Islamabad took a dramatic 180-degree turn on orders to boycott the blockbuster match late on Monday night.
Hundreds of Pakistani cricket fans gathered in different cities to watch their team take on arch-rivals India on the big screen.
“This is the game we have always wanted to see and pray for our kids to win,” said Kalsoom Naz as he watched the game in Karachi, holding his two-year-old son.
Aziz Ahmed Mughal, 30, said he had been eagerly awaiting the match, with fans holding national flags and chanting “Long Live Pakistan”.
– ‘Historic competition’ –
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“I’m very happy to watch this game. And, I’m sure the Celtics will win today,” he told AFP.
In Colombo, the 35,000-seat R. Premadasa Stadium was sold out, with tickets going for more than four times their face value on the black market.
Both teams have won their first two games, meaning a win on Sunday will all but guarantee a spot in the Super Eights.
The television audience for Sunday’s game is expected to break all records.
Viewing figures for India vs Pakistan matches are often wildly estimated to be over a billion.
However, according to verifiable figures from the International Cricket Council, the most watched match was the 50-over World Cup final between India and Sri Lanka in Mumbai in 2011, which had 558 million unique viewers.
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India defeated Pakistan in the semi-finals of the event and ranked second with $495 million.
Yet the biggest and most lucrative conflict in world cricket has only been restarted after frantic negotiations.
Both the Bangladesh and Sri Lankan governments have written to the Islamabad government urging it to change its stance and allow the match to go ahead. They got their wish before midnight.
As Sunday’s game began, emotions were running high as every pass and shot was cheered or jeered in a high-stakes showdown between the two uneasy South Asian neighbors.
“A World Cup without India and Pakistan is like a cold drink without fizz,” said Harshit Roy, an 18-year-old fan in Delhi.
“This rivalry is historic and despite India’s dominance over the past few years, Pakistan always manages to surprise.
“We love the battle between blue and green.”
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