Regardless of the political, religious or communal issues that divide us, the only thing that unites this grief-stricken nation is cricket. A win in a cricket match comes as a breath of fresh air and at least for a day, everyone seems to forget the hardships of everyday life and give happiness a chance. And when Pakistan plays against India, the excitement takes the nation to a next level. During the match, at least for a few hours, a perfect picture of unity and collective joy can be seen. A win against India brings ultimate satisfaction and happiness to the country, which is beyond just a game. It gives a chance to the people to smile, enjoy and show their passion towards their country despite all the shortcomings.

As far as cricketers are concerned, it is an opportunity to become an overnight hero and life in Pakistan can all of a sudden become a blessing. However, if a cricketer has a bad day at the office in an India-Pakistan encounter, it can dent his career despite how well he has performed previously, it stays with him throughout his life.

This Sunday, Pakistan will lock horns with India for 127^th time to kick off their world cup campaign. Pakistan has a better overall record against India (having won 72 of those with 4 matches ending without a result) but has never managed to pull off a win in a world cup competition. We have played our arch-rivals 5 times in world cups but have never been able to beat them. The current Indian team may be low on confidence, having displayed poor recent form in the tri-series held in Australia. Having said that, with a strong batting line up, the defending champions won’t want to spoil their illustrious record against Pakistan and that will be enough to keep them motivated.

On the other hand, the Pakistan team is coming in the tournament with a lot of injuries especially in the bowling department, it won’t be wrong to say that this is weakest bowling attack in the history of Pakistan cricket. With no Saeed Ajmal, who had been the leader of the attack for some time, it will be increasingly difficult for our bowlers to contain the opposition without wicket taking options.

However, when it’s India versus Pakistan, history and form do not matter. It’s all about which team can handle the pressure better on the given day. But whatever the result may be, one thing is for sure, it will be a high-octane and emotionally charged encounter which will captivate the pulse of a billion people residing in both the countries. As for neutrals or those interested in international affairs, it will be worth being part of an event that exceeds the viewership of over a billion around the world.