An official video for the upcoming Cricket World Cup 2023 released by the International Cricket Council (ICC) on Thursday was a cause for celebration for cricket fans the world over. But when cricket fans in Pakistan saw the video, they were left wondering if this was just the beginning of the kind of treatment they would receive in India.
The two minutes and 13 seconds long video features only flashes of Pakistan. And as many fans noticed, there is barely any moment where Pakistan or its fans are seen in a positive moment, unlike fans from many other nations, especially the big three.
Naturally, it upset many fans in Pakistan.
https://twitter.com/ICC/status/1681915591752384512
The video, "All it takes is just one day," starts off with an aerial shot of London, an ode to England, who were the hosts of the previous edition. England also won the tournament, beating New Zealand in a nail-biting final where the match went to super over.
The camera then follows a man wading through a sea of jubilant England fans and gets into the car to watch the match coverage on his phone.
The shot then cuts to children in India or carrying Indian flags and wearing the team jersey with the tri colours painted on their faces watching nervously as their nation squared off against South Africa in a winning opener. A missed shot by a South African batsman is met with groans by a group of South African fans watching at home.
It then cuts to a shot of legendary South African all-rounder Jonty Rhodes standing in a South African jersey.
It then moves to a shot of a mannequin wearing a Pakistani jersey. The duration of this shot is less than half a second. It quickly cuts to a shot of the England jersey and then an Indian jersey before cutting to a profile closeup of Rhodes again and then cycling through individual fans, both old and young.
It then shows Indian batsmen (India did not make it to the finals of the tournament) celebrating on the pitch.
It then cuts back to a young boy wearing a South African jersey and flying a South African flag, running past several cricketing jerseys hung and into a crowd of cheering South African supporters. That shot is quickly followed by another shot of England fans waving flags and celebrating.
That scene converts into England players standing for the anthem, followed by South African fans, followed by the New Zealand team and then the Holland national team.
The video then transports you into a barber shop where a boy gets the Bengal Tiger painted on his head to support Bangladesh.
The scene then transports you into a tattoo bar where a man is getting Indian Captain Virat Kohli's name and his iconic shirt number 18 tattooed on his back. The scene then cuts to Virat Kohli fielding and then back to another man who has had Virat Kohli's face tattooed on their back.
The shot then cuts to an array of television screens where Indian legend Sachin Tendulkar is batting. The shot then switches to an Indian fan, painted in the colours of the Indian flag and holding a large Indian flag.
As this fan waves his flag, the shot melds into another shot of an England fan waving their flag. That quickly cuts to a shot of a dejected Australian fan sitting in the stands surrounded by England fans. Suddenly the Australian fan jumps up and waves a giant Australian flag.
The scene then cuts to a Bangladeshi player diving to stop a boundary while a Sri Lankan batsman is seen diving to reach the crease, kicking up dirt.
And as the narrator talks about "the lows of anguish", a woman with what appears to be a hijab is seen starting to bury her face in her hands in prayer. The shots sandwich a shot of Pakistan bowler Wahab Riaz burying his face in his hands in anguish and frustration.
This shot comes after 58 seconds have passed in the video and lasts for 1.20 seconds.
A montage of disappointed players follows, including an Indian batsman MS Dhoni dismissed and walking back, followed by South African batsman AB De Villiers and then a West Indian player.
The scene then cuts to a lonely Pakistani fan sitting dejected in the stands who is cheered up by an Indian fan as other Pakistani fans walk out of the stadium.
This is the single longest scene where Pakistan is shown. It starts at 1:04 minutes and lasts until 1:08, a total of 4.39 seconds.
A montage of Afghanistan batting and losing wickets with Afghan fans praying follows, mixed with some Indian fans praying.
A shot of Muhammad Amir getting bowled is inserted, lasting around 0.81 seconds.
After a shot of fans praying for their team, it is followed by a shot of an England batsman smashing Pakistani bowler and all-rounder Shadab Khan for a boundary that lasts only 0.5 seconds.
After similar quick cuts of different batsmen striking boundaries, Shadab is again seen, this time bowling to an Indian batsman and getting dispatched to the boundary. This shot lasts just under two seconds, coming in at 1.80 and shows the camera pan following the ball high into the air.
This shot ends with Shaheen Shah Afridi doing his trademark celebrations after taking a wicket. This shot lasts half a second before it cuts to Sri Lankan fans cheering.
It is followed by a stand full of jubilant Indian fans, followed by a tent full of Australian fans, then a bus full of New Zealand fans who throw a cap at the camera. The transition allows the camera to open in a street where Indian fans are celebrating alongside New Zealand and other fans.
It cuts to England players celebrating a wicket and then Bangladeshi fans travelling in a rickshaw.
This gives way to a time-frozen shot of Sri Lankan legend Muttiah Muralitharan watching the match with Sri Lankan fans and popcorn flying out of a popcorn tub.
That scene gives way to another montage of archival footage, including one of another Sri Lankan legend Sanath Jayasuriya leaping to make a one-handed catch.
The montage then shows a shot of former legendary Pakistani batsman Inzimamul Haq being iconically run out by South African Jonty Rhodes in the 1992 world cup (which was ultimately won by Pakistan) with a Superman-dive. This shot lasts 1.10 seconds.
Another quick shot of a catch by an English player cuts to a montage of scenes where the world cup was lifted, starting with West Indies winning the first World Cup, followed by India's triumph in 1983, and then jumping to Australia's win in 2015, and then to England's victory. Pakistan's 1992 triumph is skipped altogether.
The montage ends with MS Dhoni smashing a boundary over long-on.
The video then ends with Shahrukh Khan completing the monologue on the tagline, "All it takes is one day".
Overall, Pakistan -- players or fans are shown just seven times for a total of 9.79 seconds and mostly with bowlers dejected, batsmen getting bowled or run out and disappointed fans and one shot of Shaheen Shah Afridi celebrating and a shot of a mannequin with the Pakistan jersey.
Several fans pointed out the bias in the video.
https://twitter.com/apkaimmi/status/1682017494347792388
https://twitter.com/SenatorSameer/status/1681950480832790530
https://twitter.com/Saif_u_Rehman/status/1681998799885987840
https://twitter.com/Osman_malik5/status/1682005848820703233
https://twitter.com/MshariqZ/status/1681964046906474500
https://twitter.com/saqib42/status/1681982462648528899
The two minutes and 13 seconds long video features only flashes of Pakistan. And as many fans noticed, there is barely any moment where Pakistan or its fans are seen in a positive moment, unlike fans from many other nations, especially the big three.
Naturally, it upset many fans in Pakistan.
https://twitter.com/ICC/status/1681915591752384512
The video, "All it takes is just one day," starts off with an aerial shot of London, an ode to England, who were the hosts of the previous edition. England also won the tournament, beating New Zealand in a nail-biting final where the match went to super over.
The camera then follows a man wading through a sea of jubilant England fans and gets into the car to watch the match coverage on his phone.
The shot then cuts to children in India or carrying Indian flags and wearing the team jersey with the tri colours painted on their faces watching nervously as their nation squared off against South Africa in a winning opener. A missed shot by a South African batsman is met with groans by a group of South African fans watching at home.
It then cuts to a shot of legendary South African all-rounder Jonty Rhodes standing in a South African jersey.
It then moves to a shot of a mannequin wearing a Pakistani jersey. The duration of this shot is less than half a second. It quickly cuts to a shot of the England jersey and then an Indian jersey before cutting to a profile closeup of Rhodes again and then cycling through individual fans, both old and young.
It then shows Indian batsmen (India did not make it to the finals of the tournament) celebrating on the pitch.
It then cuts back to a young boy wearing a South African jersey and flying a South African flag, running past several cricketing jerseys hung and into a crowd of cheering South African supporters. That shot is quickly followed by another shot of England fans waving flags and celebrating.
That scene converts into England players standing for the anthem, followed by South African fans, followed by the New Zealand team and then the Holland national team.
The video then transports you into a barber shop where a boy gets the Bengal Tiger painted on his head to support Bangladesh.
The scene then transports you into a tattoo bar where a man is getting Indian Captain Virat Kohli's name and his iconic shirt number 18 tattooed on his back. The scene then cuts to Virat Kohli fielding and then back to another man who has had Virat Kohli's face tattooed on their back.
The shot then cuts to an array of television screens where Indian legend Sachin Tendulkar is batting. The shot then switches to an Indian fan, painted in the colours of the Indian flag and holding a large Indian flag.
As this fan waves his flag, the shot melds into another shot of an England fan waving their flag. That quickly cuts to a shot of a dejected Australian fan sitting in the stands surrounded by England fans. Suddenly the Australian fan jumps up and waves a giant Australian flag.
The scene then cuts to a Bangladeshi player diving to stop a boundary while a Sri Lankan batsman is seen diving to reach the crease, kicking up dirt.
And as the narrator talks about "the lows of anguish", a woman with what appears to be a hijab is seen starting to bury her face in her hands in prayer. The shots sandwich a shot of Pakistan bowler Wahab Riaz burying his face in his hands in anguish and frustration.
This shot comes after 58 seconds have passed in the video and lasts for 1.20 seconds.
A montage of disappointed players follows, including an Indian batsman MS Dhoni dismissed and walking back, followed by South African batsman AB De Villiers and then a West Indian player.
The scene then cuts to a lonely Pakistani fan sitting dejected in the stands who is cheered up by an Indian fan as other Pakistani fans walk out of the stadium.
This is the single longest scene where Pakistan is shown. It starts at 1:04 minutes and lasts until 1:08, a total of 4.39 seconds.
A montage of Afghanistan batting and losing wickets with Afghan fans praying follows, mixed with some Indian fans praying.
A shot of Muhammad Amir getting bowled is inserted, lasting around 0.81 seconds.
After a shot of fans praying for their team, it is followed by a shot of an England batsman smashing Pakistani bowler and all-rounder Shadab Khan for a boundary that lasts only 0.5 seconds.
After similar quick cuts of different batsmen striking boundaries, Shadab is again seen, this time bowling to an Indian batsman and getting dispatched to the boundary. This shot lasts just under two seconds, coming in at 1.80 and shows the camera pan following the ball high into the air.
This shot ends with Shaheen Shah Afridi doing his trademark celebrations after taking a wicket. This shot lasts half a second before it cuts to Sri Lankan fans cheering.
It is followed by a stand full of jubilant Indian fans, followed by a tent full of Australian fans, then a bus full of New Zealand fans who throw a cap at the camera. The transition allows the camera to open in a street where Indian fans are celebrating alongside New Zealand and other fans.
It cuts to England players celebrating a wicket and then Bangladeshi fans travelling in a rickshaw.
This gives way to a time-frozen shot of Sri Lankan legend Muttiah Muralitharan watching the match with Sri Lankan fans and popcorn flying out of a popcorn tub.
That scene gives way to another montage of archival footage, including one of another Sri Lankan legend Sanath Jayasuriya leaping to make a one-handed catch.
The montage then shows a shot of former legendary Pakistani batsman Inzimamul Haq being iconically run out by South African Jonty Rhodes in the 1992 world cup (which was ultimately won by Pakistan) with a Superman-dive. This shot lasts 1.10 seconds.
Another quick shot of a catch by an English player cuts to a montage of scenes where the world cup was lifted, starting with West Indies winning the first World Cup, followed by India's triumph in 1983, and then jumping to Australia's win in 2015, and then to England's victory. Pakistan's 1992 triumph is skipped altogether.
The montage ends with MS Dhoni smashing a boundary over long-on.
The video then ends with Shahrukh Khan completing the monologue on the tagline, "All it takes is one day".
Overall, Pakistan -- players or fans are shown just seven times for a total of 9.79 seconds and mostly with bowlers dejected, batsmen getting bowled or run out and disappointed fans and one shot of Shaheen Shah Afridi celebrating and a shot of a mannequin with the Pakistan jersey.
Several fans pointed out the bias in the video.
https://twitter.com/apkaimmi/status/1682017494347792388
https://twitter.com/SenatorSameer/status/1681950480832790530
https://twitter.com/Saif_u_Rehman/status/1681998799885987840
https://twitter.com/Osman_malik5/status/1682005848820703233
https://twitter.com/MshariqZ/status/1681964046906474500
https://twitter.com/saqib42/status/1681982462648528899