Sports not only has the power to unite people, but the reason for its global popularity and acceptance is that it speaks in a language everyone understands. Hence, making elongated political tension between two countries null and void for a common fan. During an interaction with The Indian Express, Pakistan pacer Hasan Ali‘s Indian father-in-law has expressed a longing desire of not only meeting his granddaughter for the first time during ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 but also getting clicked with former India captain Virat Kohli.
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While the verbal diarrhea from politicians and administrators from either side of the border is mostly aimed at aggravating the dosage of hatred being continuously injected into the general populace, there are also a few stories coming from the very people themselves which proves how only love for each other can can break the seemingly strong shackles of hate and negativity.
Hasan Ali’s Father-In-Law Wants To Get Clicked With Virat Kohli During 2023 World Cup
Former Pakistan captain Shoaib Malik marrying Indian Tennis star Sania Mirza, Mohsin Khan getting hitched with Indian actress Reena Roy, or the legendary Zaheer Abbas tying the knot with Indian interior designer Samina Abbas (formerly Rita Luthra), stories of meeting of hearts have ignored the conflicted political relations between two neighboring nations over the years.
Getting added to list back in 2019 was a last-minute addition to Pakistan’s 2023 World Cup squad, Hasan Ali, who married an Indian flight engineer named Samiya Arzoo in Dubai. Hailing from Nuh, Haryana, Samiya had met Hasan in Dubai itself via a mutual friend. So, when she expressed her desire to marry Ali, her ever-progressive father, Liyakat Khan, agreed to her decision without batting an eyelid.
Hasan and Samiya were blessed with a daughter named Helena Hasan Ali in April 2021. However, Khan, a retired Block Development Officer, just cannot wait for the blockbuster World Cup clash between India and Pakistan on October 14 in Ahmedabad. Reason? He would hopefully meet his two-year-old granddaughter for the first-time ever!
However, apart from wanting to host his daughter and her family at his home in village Chandeni, Khan also hopes that somehow his son-in-law arranges a meeting with his favourite cricketer Virat Kohli.
Hailing Kohli as “the greatest Indian cricketer”, Khan, in an interview with The Indian Express, not only wishes to have a picture with him but also meet the rest of the Indian cricketers.
“I don’t think there is anyone better than Virat Kohli in this era. Yes, there was a slump in form, but he is back — still not at his best, but far ahead of the rest. I have this feeling that he will end up being the leading run-getter of the World Cup. When I meet Hasan [Ali], I will request him to help me meet the players of my team [India] as well. I want to take a photo with Virat Kohli, and give my regards to Rahul Dravid.”
Pakistani Fan Had Picked Virat Kohli Over Babar Azam During Asia Cup 2023
Videos of ever-passionate fans from India-Pakistan cricket contests somehow go viral across social media platforms nowadays. A latest example of the same had been registered during Asia Cup 2023 four weeks ago when a Kohli fan from Pakistan not only expressed her love for him, but also picked him over Pakistan captain Babar Azam as a personal favourite.
While her wish to witness Kohli score a century couldn’t be fulfilled that day, her raw emotions in adulation of the star cricketer did make her a hit on both sides of the border.
With sports acting as the fulcrum, such fans becoming symbols of love and acceptance act as an ideal bridge beneath which the detractors and torch bearers of hatred can only sulk from a distance. It is true that in the journey of sparks of hope, storms of hatred are more likely to dominate. That said, if the world is indeed in its last stage of animosity and enmity, love is the only cure for this illness.
