2011 Cricket World Cup Semifinal: India v Pakistan

2011 Cricket World Cup Semifinal
Event 2011 Cricket World Cup
India Pakistan
India Pakistan
260/9 231
50 overs 49.5 overs
Date 30 March 2011
Venue Punjab Cricket Association Stadium, Mohali
Umpires Simon Taufel (Aus) and Ian Gould (Eng)[1]
Attendance 35,000

The 2nd semifinal of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 was played between the arch-rivals India and Pakistan at Punjab Cricket Association Stadium, Mohali on 30 March 2011. India won the match by 29 runs and qualified for the 2011 Cricket World Cup Final. India won the Toss and elected to bat first and made 260 runs in 50 overs for 9 wickets. Pakistan though with a good start failed to make up to the score with just 231 allout in 49.5 overs resulting in the victory of India over Pakistan[2] and leading their way towards the final of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 against Sri Lanka where they beat Sri Lanka and won the World Cup.

The match holds utmost historical significance because of the hype created around the match since both the teams made their way towards the semifinal. The match was even equated to war[3] and it experienced the presence of celebrities, diplomats and Prime Ministers from both of the nations alongside the huge crowd at the stadium. Three people including a Pakistani actor all belonging to Pakistan died out of shock after Pakistan lost the match.[4][5] This match has been perceived by Pakistani former cricketers and fans as a great let down from Pakistan due to their weak fielding and batting despite good talent shown previously from the Pakistani captain and players in the 2011 ICC cup. The match drew high television ratings – in India it had an estimated 11.74% TV rating for the whole match,[6][7] although its audience was beaten by the India v Sri Lanka final with 135 million.[8]

Rivalry background

India and Pakistan have been the traditional arch rivals since the Partition of India in various fronts. The countries have fought three wars against each other. The same battlefield rivalry always reflected on the Cricket Stadium throughout the history since the first international cricket match between the two countries in 1952.This dispute has affected both diplomatic and political relations, and the same animosity can be felt on the field. A match between the two countries is often equated with war. Often a political or diplomatic tension has a fallout on the cricket relations between the two countries including suspension of cricket tours to the other country.

Match

Initially Pre-match rain in Mohali threatened the India-Pak semi final however things became clear after the Meteorological Department assured the non-possibility of the rain during the match.[9] India won the Toss and elected to bat first and made 260 runs in 50 overs for 9 wickets. Sachin Tendulkar scored 85 runs, But he was dropped 4 times by Pakistani fielders, and one LBW decision was overturned when he was on 23. He was awarded the Man of the Match. Pakistan on the other hand though with a good start failed to maintain consistency and were restricted to just 231 runs in 49.5 overs. India won the match and confirmed their place in the Finals.

30 March 2011
14:30 (D/N)
Scorecard
India 
260/9 (50 overs)
v
 Pakistan
231 (49.5 overs)
Sachin Tendulkar 85 (115)
Wahab Riaz 5/46 (10 overs)
Misbah-ul-Haq 56 (76)
Ashish Nehra 2/33 (10 overs)
India won by 29 runs
Punjab Cricket Association Stadium, Mohali, Chandigarh
Umpires: Ian Gould (Eng) and Simon Taufel (Aus)
Player of the match: Sachin Tendulkar (Ind)
  • India won the toss and elected to bat

Effects

Tickets for the semi-final match had been sold out in Mohali for days and many businesses and offices in both countries were closed during the play.[10] Governments in almost all the states and provinces of both the nations declared official Holidays on 30 March in view of this match.[10] Thousands of screens were installed in public places across both the nations, and television stores experienced increased sales of television sets in order to watch this and other games at the 2011 World Cup.

Cricket Diplomacy has been the positive perception from both the countries to strengthen the relationships between the two nations in the time of chaos after the 2008 Mumbai attacks which further deteriorated the already existing tussle between the two countries. Prime Minister of India Manmohan Singh used this opportunity and invited his Pakistani counterpart Yousuf Raza Gilani to watch the match with him at Mohali. Subsequently Gilani accepted the offer and agreed to watch the match with Singh.[11][12] Victory Venkatesh, Aamir Khan, Priety Zinta, Vivek Oberoi were among the numerous celebrities present in the stadium during the match along with the massive cheering crowd.[13] After the victory, celebrations erupted throughout India and fans across the country cheered throughout the night.[14][15]

References

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