Pakistani cricket fans light fireworks as they celebrate the victory of the Pakistan cricket team on their first match between India and Pakistan in Twenty20 World Cup Super 12 stage in Dubai, at a park in Karachi, Pakistan October 24, 2021.REUTERS/Akhtar
KARACHI, Pakistan - Firecrackers, blaring car horns and bursts of gunfire rang out across Pakistani cities on Sunday as cricket fans celebrated their first World Cup victory over arch rivals India.
Shortly after captain Babar Azam and his partner Mohammad Rizwan sealed a crushing 10-wicket win in their Twenty20 World Cup group match in Dubai, cheers echoed from houses and apartment buildings.
"Congratulations to the Pakistan Team & esp(ecially) to Babar Azam who led from the front, as well as to the brilliant performances of Rizwan & Shaheen Afridi," said Prime Minister Imran Khan, who led Pakistan to triumph in the one-day World Cup in 1992.
"The nation is proud of you all," he tweeted.
His congratulations were echoed by the chief of the army staff, underlining the political symbolism of the win.
On the field, however, players from both sides embraced and chatted warmly after the match.
In Pakistan's largest city Karachi, fans poured onto the streets immediately after the final ball was bowled, waving Pakistani flags from motorcycles and car windows.
