Win against England gave Indians common identity

The Indian or Pakistani culture is more visibly displayed in these two cities than in others and it is unlikely anyone would like to come off second best here.

As chance would have it, India finished second in Group A and Pakistan are tops in Group B and the two are scheduled to meet at Old Trafford, Manchester, on June 8.

The last thing the organisers want is trouble in the stands and egg on their face. How they cando it without departing from their cricketing traditions is difficult to visualise. Do they ban spectators from coming on to the field? Do they put cameras on the stands? Or ask each spectator to give proof of his lineage? How do they ban consumption of alcohal in the stands?

No easy answers could be found for these tricky posers though some measure has to be conceptualised and put in practice. quot;I for one would be a fool to take my wife to this match,quot; says Arup Ganguly, a young British professional of Indian background, quot;though I would not miss it for my lifequot;.

The win against England on Sunday has had an entire nation rooting for the success of the Indian team. All these millions of Indian cricket lovers would fine it difficult to believe that the Edgbaston win means more to Indians living in England than it does to countrymen back home.

quot;For the first time in my life, have I been bugged on India,quot; said a young Brit-Indian.

After India had inflicted that crushing defeat on England on Sunday manywept openly and so big and prolonged was the bhangra and dholak8217; celebration outside Edgbaston that there were traffic jams.

The same supporters a day earlier were bugging the English fielders from the sidelines. Intoned one Indian supporter: quot;Hey Mullally, finally you are bowling to real batsmenquot;.

The England left-arm paceman made a vulgar gesture in return which led to still more active ribbing from the fan: quot;Hey, why are you worked up so early? Save it for it8217;s a long day.quot;

Hundreds of Indians, who had been left dissatisfied with the unfinished game on Saturday, returned on Sunday and stayed till the end.

quot;I was so tired driving up and down to London to watch the Edgbaston game, I thought I would watch it on TV,quot; said Ganguly.

quot;But I couldn8217;t sleep that night and at five I was up alerting my friends and asking them to come alongquot;.

Most of his friends accompanied him and those who didn8217;t feel they missed out the celebration of their lifetime. quot;What this win has done is to give a common identityto Indians living here,quot; said Ganguly. quot;It has made them feel proud of their origin.quot;.

A group called Hit racism for a six8217; is already active trying to ask the supporters of the two teams to cool it Tuesday next week.

The implication is that any trouble here would put the Asian ethnic community in a poor light and some definite measures may be taken against them in future. Another school of thought is advocating a joint appeal by the captains of the two teams, Mohd Azharuddin and Wasim Akram to their supporters. They are wondering whether Sachin Tendulkar should join them.

It may not still happen but the point is made to illustrate how unsure the authorities are about their measures in a situation which is as volatile as an India-Pakistan match.y