Are offshore venues best for commercially exploiting India-Pakistan rivalry? 

When the prime motive becomes to earn and move on, who cares if the debris left behind could produce an unbearable stench?
Captains of India Rohit Sharma and Pakistan Sarfraz Ahmed pose with the Asia Cup in Dubai (File | AP)
Captains of India Rohit Sharma and Pakistan Sarfraz Ahmed pose with the Asia Cup in Dubai (File | AP)

In the barren deserts of UAE, cricketing seeds were planted in the eighties by Sheikh Abdul Rahman Bhukhatir, to milk a cricketing rivalry which could not be enacted in the playing fields of those countries. Sharjah, just a stone’s throw from Dubai, was chosen as the venue for India-Pakistan clashes, which showcased the cricketing skills of these countries in the backdrop of war-like imagery. It was the perfect fuel to draw unprecedented television audiences at home, which feasted on cricket and the outrageously jingoistic expats screaming their lungs out in support of their team.

This literal “war minus the shooting” may have done wonders to the bank balances of the organisers and players, but it did immense damage to the cause of friendship between the two nations. The images of foul-mouthed, flag-waving spectators inside the stadium, being beamed live inside millions of drawing rooms in the two countries, became the new tool to prove how “hatred” for each other defines the two neighbours. It was a strange mix of hatred, greed, brilliant cricket, superb organisational skills and sophisticated television coverage that exploited the insecurities of the two nations and became a tremendously successful event.

Among the many fallouts of this business model, was the scourge of match-fixing, as doubts started to be raised about the genuineness of many contests. Anyway, that is history now and being remembered as one watched India play Pakistan in the same region once again in a tournament titled Asia Cup. Instead of Sharjah, Dubai is the new venue and the reason behind having it in the UAE is the same as it was in the 1980s. The one pleasant difference this time, though, was that the crowd, unlike in Sharjah in the past, was less hostile to each other’s loyalties and possibly more appreciative of the cricketing skills on display. Or is one speaking too soon? But the similarities with the past are too many. Create an off-shore venue for India and Pakistan to play and help the broadcaster as well as the organisers make hefty profits. It is a bizarre format where there is every possibility that India and Pakistan play each other not once or twice but three times.

The first among the three likely encounters was a damp squib. The talented Pakistani team, from the way they played and executed their plans, seemed to have all intentions to lose. Just like India against Hong Kong in the previous match, Pakistan were listless, disinterested and lacked any motivation to mount a spirited fight. I guess a Pakistani fan would want to believe that in the heat of the desert it may be a better strategy to preserve energy for more important matches where winning would mean lifting the trophy. In a place with a very recent “dubious” history, as reflected in the manner in which many of the T20 league matches were played there, troubling questions are bound to arise.

Are these offshore venues the best place to commercially exploit an India- Pakistan rivalry that could be fraught with many debilitating side-effects? These are questions that probably have no relevance for the organisers as well as the BCCI, which has admitted that the format of the tournament and Dubai as the venue for all India matches has been specifically done keeping profits in mind. When the prime motive becomes to earn and move on, who cares if the debris left behind could produce an unbearable stench?

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The New Indian Express
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