“Thanks to the crowd. We feel like we’re playing at home,” Babar Azam’s sentiments perfectly depicted the scenes in Sydney as Pakistan fans played their part in the victory against New Zealand in the first semi-final of the 2022 T20 World Cup.
The Sydney Cricket Ground turned into a sea of green as the Men in Green booked their place in their third final of the T20 World Cup, the first since their World title in 2009.
The fans rejoiced as Pakistan came back from the brink of elimination to become the first team to qualify for the final of the mega-event. The Green Shirts played a near-perfect game against an in-form New Zealand as they got them in a spot of bother from the start of the match.
The atmosphere in the stadium was like a 12th man for the team as they drew inspiration from the support and convincingly won the match by 7 wickets.
The players, the commentators, and everyone who witnessed the spectacle were taken aback by the support for Pakistan as it looked like that Sydney had turned into Lahore or Karachi.
Check out some of the awe-inspiring videos from the match:
In Lahore or Karachi ??? thought in Sydney 😁 awesome atmosphere here @T20WorldCup #nzvpak pic.twitter.com/RqndowxZtT
— Russel Arnold (@RusselArnold69) November 9, 2022
https://twitter.com/nahsatan_/status/1590426718653009920
All it needs for Pakistan fans to get going is for the DJ to play 'Dil Dil Pakistan'.
They are leaving no stone unturned to make Sydney feel like Karachi/Lahore.
If you travelled in public transport today, you'd only see Green T-shirts today. pic.twitter.com/9Z7W30wlQZ
— Gurkirat Singh Gill (@gurkiratsgill) November 9, 2022
Sydney has been Pakistan’s strongest 12th man this #T20WorldCup.
The support against South Africa and now today, even Babar has said it’s felt like playing at home.
Well done. pic.twitter.com/kpAP3fZJHB
— Change of Pace (@ChangeofPace414) November 9, 2022
Pakistan gets a hometown crowd in Sydney Australia #T20WorldCup2022 #PakvsNz pic.twitter.com/pq2fxyo7Sa
— Karachista (@karachista) November 9, 2022
Match winning DIL DIL PAKISTAN chanting..😍😍😍💓🇵🇰🇵🇰🇵🇰 Sydney was Energetic pic.twitter.com/UlHxqjn5Pi
— 𝑻𝒂𝒉𝒊𝒓 𝑺𝒉𝒂𝒖𝒌𝒂𝒕 (@TahirShaukat9) November 10, 2022
Celebrations Started Outside Sydney Stadium After Pakistan Win Over New Zealand In The SEMI-FINAL. #Pakistan #PakvsNz #T20Iworldcup2022 pic.twitter.com/8lRqZXnfOj
— Cricket Clue (@cricketclue247) November 9, 2022
Before today, I had only read or heard first hand accounts about what cricket means to Pakistan, but today I have seen it myself through celebrations, and some of it is truly unbelievable.
It's like a festival out there. They are singing in the trams, in trains, on the streets pic.twitter.com/IH3vTdLfPr
— Gurkirat Singh Gill (@gurkiratsgill) November 9, 2022
