Mickey Arthur, Head coach of the Pakistan team, refrained from using the fan base as an excuse for the loss, he did raise questions about its one-sided nature. The scarcity of green-clad supporters in the stands was partially due to Pakistani fans not being granted visas for the tournament. A similar situation unfolded for the Pakistani media contingent traveling to the event
The estimated crowd size ranged from 115,000 to 125,000, creating a predominantly blue atmosphere as both teams faced their respective national anthems. This remained the case throughout the match, with the noise levels escalating as India approached their target of 192 runs with seven wickets in hand.
https://twitter.com/DankShubhum/status/1713408280624775255
The precise number of people in the Ahmedabad crowd on Saturday was not disclosed, but identifying the few green-shirted individuals amidst the sea of blue was not a challenge. It’s possible that there were only three such individuals, all of whom were Pakistani-Americans from the United States.
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“It didn’t seem like an ICC event to be brutally honest. It seemed like a bilateral series; it seemed like a BCCI event. I didn’t hear Dil Dil Pakistan coming through the microphones too often tonight.”
Up until Friday, only three out of the 60 journalists in Pakistan’s group, out of an initial list of 355 applicants, had received visas, and even that came after significant delays.
This contrasted starkly with the circumstances during the 2016 global tournament hosted by India or even the 2011 World Cup, during which the BCCI facilitated 6,500 visas for Pakistani fans solely for the Mohali semi-final.
When asked if such situations should be tolerated at global events, Arthur chose not to comment, stating, “I can’t address that at the moment. I’d rather avoid any potential fines.”
