Inzamam's decision, and Nehra's dog

Inzamam-ul-Haq's decision at the toss was severely criticised by the media, but Rashid Latif has hailed it as a "tremendous call". In his syndicated column, he said: "Pakistan reckoned their fast bowlers would be able to take early wickets and dent the famed Indian batting. They were also proved right on hindsight, since they now know that they would be able to chase any target later in the day against a weak Indian bowling attack. That it did not happen was because our spearheads Shoaib Akhtar and Mohammad Sami were off target. They over-stepped, bowled wides and generally experimented on either side of the wicket."

After speaking about the wayward bowling, he stressed the need for a bowling coach. "Javed Miandad is doing his best as the coach but he cannot concentrate on everything. He is very good with his batting tips and fielding drills. He also needs to plan strategies and tactics but he cannot do everything."

* * *

Cricket fans in North America stayed awake all night to watch the Karachi one-dayer. The Nation reports: "Ahead of the series, the fans here have been frantically working out deals with a satellite company to view the matches, often paying a high price for the installation of special dishes. Some restaurants had also made arrangements to show the match to their patrons and reportedly did roaring business." The newspaper quotes one of the viewers too: "You needed a Shahid Afridi instead of Naveed-ul-Hasan to clinch the encounter."

According to a report in The Hindu, citizens of Toronto weren't too far behind. "In Toronto, night turned to day as the cricket mania that has swept the Indian subcontinent gripped Canada as well, creating a near-frenzy among the large immigrant population from the two nations here. The difference of over 10 hours in the time zones of Canada and Pakistan made the match, which was telecast live, an all-night festival."

* * *

Before the start of the match, the PCB had spoken about cutting out special treatment to VIPs. However, a report in Dawn criticises the PCB for its "tall claims", as "so-called VIPs enjoyed privileges throughout Saturday's Pakistan-India cricket match."

The report added, "Unknown VIPs were regularly escorted by some `influential people' to special enclosures, while valid ticket-holders suffered ... As the match entered [its] interesting stage after lunch, the press gallery, which should be reserved only for media, turned into [a] public place as VIPs including TV artists occupied the seats. Quite a few VIPs with their families sat till the match ended."

* * *

The Indian Express carried an interesting snippet about the goings-on in the Nehra household during the climactic final stages of the match. "Nine runs, last over, Sourav Ganguly walks up to Ashish Nehra, one billion hearts stop beating. And in the living-room of a house in Delhi Cantonment, Durban, a German Shepherd stops pacing to settle down quietly near a sofa, blinking. He's the Nehra family pet. And he has to hold his wagging."

After a great first four balls, when the tension reached its peak, Nehra's brother is quoted as saying, "Bowl a dot ball. That will do for now." And then there is a vivid description of the events that unfolded before and after the last ball: "[Nehra's] mother turns the other way and refuses to look at her son. And she doesn't until Zaheer Khan takes the catch, until everyone in the room is shouting, until everyone is hugging each other, until she finishes the prayer. Then she does what a mother does: she rushes into the kitchen to get the sweets. What about Durban? He's back on his feet, his tail a blur."

* * *

The Times of India also mentions how Priyanka Gandhi and Robert Vadra, her husband, defied security guards, "by insisting on sitting in the public gallery instead of the safety of the chairman's box". However, the report adds, they were finally whisked away by their jittery keepers.