With Sachin on their minds & Sania in their hearts...

May 10, 2006

They have come to Pune with cricket and Sachin Tendulkar on their minds, but Sania Mirza is a close second. It.s the first time that the 13-member team from Pakistan, representing Karachi, has come here to participate in the 12-team Burhani tournament organised by the Dawoodi Bohra community at the Poona College.s Azam Campus ground.

The ongoing day-night tournament is into its fourth year and is being held to celebrate the 95th birthday of His Holiness Dr Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin Saheb. Teams from Pakistan, the United Arab Emirates and 10 Indian teams from several cities are participating. The final is on May 10.

And the Pakistani team is on a mission: Make its presence felt in Pune. ..Every time India and Pakistan play, it generates excitement and people come to watch. We have come to win the tournament, or at least make our presence felt,.. says Pakistani skipper Huzafa Hassan.

No wonder then that the organisers had planned the first match of the tournament between Karachi and Mumbai. And Karachi lived up to its expectations as the tournament favourite and downed last year.s champions by 13 runs. This, after travelling for 24 hours to make it to the venue on time.

All the 13 members of the Pakistani team are on their first visit to India and Pune feels ..just like home...

..We got a really nice welcome here. The only difference is that here women ride scooters too,.. says Hassan, who is amused by the way girls sit astride while riding pillion.

They are keen on meeting Sachin and Sania and plan to spend some free time after the tournament to catch up on some movies. ..We keep up to date with the latest Hindi movies and hope to watch some here before heading back. We want to see Fanaa but that will get released only later and we will miss it,.. said a team member.

The Pakistan team had received the invitation last year too. ..Visa problems kept us away but due to improved relations between the two countries, the visa process took very little time this year,.. says team manager Muffadal. As for the next year? ..We want to come back,.. he says.