In the US, they are known to conduct flash opinion polls on most things and if one were to be carried out on the T20 World Cup being staged in the country, the chances are that only a minuscule minority of the Americans would be aware of it.
A BBC vox pop revealed that not too many New Yorkers are tuned into the event. Even the discernible seem to have little knowledge about the game, with one media outlet, reporting on the India-Bangladesh warm-up game, rather bizarrely said India won the match 182-122, rather than by 60 runs.
But here comes India versus Pakistan, the mother of all contests – arguably the biggest nation-to-nation face-off in all sport, with some knowledgeable locals declaring it as cricket’s answer to football’s Brazil versus Argentina. The World Cup, the neutral venue, and the excitement of New York add extra flavor to the day. The stadium will be packed to the brim, and television viewership could reach unprecedented levels and a part of the city will come to a standstill as the areas other than Nassau County will be closed for other activities during the game. From morning till evening, New York’s Long Island will be shut, whether America likes cricket or not.
Leave aside the Americans; the Asians – particularly expat Indians and Pakistanis – will have their moment under the sun, showing the country of the Super Bowl, the most celebrated sporting event in the US, what sporting passion can also look like. There may not be this glitzy half-time show that the NFL final is known for, but the local authorities are organizing a watch party at Cedar Creek Park, a public space not far from Eisenhower Park, which houses the 35,000 capacity pop-up Nassau County Stadium. This event is for those without tickets to Sunday’s game and there are thousands of them with tickets being sold for exorbitantly high prices on the black market. The authorities have shut down all other activities until 4 pm on June 9.
The World Cup unfolds against the backdrop of security threats from ISIS, with intel received by the police reportedly having references to the India-Pakistan match on June 9, and authorities are taking every precaution. Nassau County Police Department (NCPD) Commissioner Patrick Ryder announced the deployment of an additional 100 officers to patrol the county. The International Cricket Council (ICC), in close coordination with the authorities, affirmed the NCPD’s capability to manage any situation. Furthermore, potential soft target areas around the venue have been identified and addressed to enhance security measures. “When you have a game and a crowd as big as this it’s all credible,” NCPD police chief Patrick Ryder told the local media. “We’ll go through every fine detail. There will be no targets that will be left out there.”
As the match commences at 10:30 am EST on Sunday, the external world will fade into insignificance, with all focus trained on the surface that has caused anxiety and stirred anticipation with its green top, treacherously unpredictable bounce, and remarkable seam movement. The ICC has endeavored to ensure it will be cricket over everything else that takes the centrestage, but when it’s India versus Pakistan, the ‘everything else’ comes part of the package. Everyone will have to live with the internal, external and surround sounds. (Agencies )
