After an anti-climactic match between seasoned cricket rivals India and Pakistan on Sunday, the verdict is clear as to which side played better. India cruised to a comfortable victory in every department, be it in the batting or bowling sides, making the match less battle than a walkover.
Naturally, as is the case with the internet, fans of the winning side were victorious in their meme game. But what of the fans of the Pakistani team?
Banter was the name of the game on Twitter and elsewhere, as Pakistanis cracked jokes at the expense of their team. Shireen Mazari, the state’s human rights minister, blamed “sheesha smoking” for the team’s lethargy on the pitch.
She went on to commend the Indian side’s performance and highlight Sarfaraz Ahmed's yawning on the field.
However, being a minister, Shireen’s response was relatively mellow compared to that of the larger body of Pakistani fans on the internet. Fans had many contentions, and fitness was one. One
Pakistan’s disastrous decision to bowl first was an easy target.
From his yawning on the field to his failure to lead the team to victory, Sarfaraz Khan found himself at the butt of many jokes.
Some users used TikTok to poke at the feeling of being a Pakistani wicketkeeper trying to organize the fielders against a relentless Indian batting lineup.
So deep was the disappointment in the team’s performance that the censure soon fell on England, who lost by 14 runs to Pakistan despite players scoring two centuries.
The most popular troll has to be the fan who issued a mock press conference claiming the players were eating burgers the night before the match.
After a point, once the trolling got too intense, the team’s bowler, Mohammad Amir, issued an appeal for players to stop swearing at them, promising a comeback. Proving that the banter was in good spirits, many fans retweeted his post.
All in all, the fans proved that you can turn any situation into a bright one by using humour. While the Pakistan squad has reason to introspect, hopefully the energy of their fans will bring them back to spirits when they play South Africa on June 21, followed by a match against New Zealand on June 26.