Rohan Bopanna and Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi
The most common thread that runs between the two neighbouring countries of India and Pakistan is that of hate. Other common threads are of course, cricket, and a common history of more than 5000 years. But sadly, it is hate that precedes everything else. Each country steadfastly hates the other, and each feels that everything that is wrong with in their country is the other’s fault. If you ask any one citizen whether they could ever cooperate with citizens of the other country, you will get a vehement “no” in response. Every citizen of the two neighbouring countries feels that the other is wrong, biased and communal. They cannot and will not ever imagine a situation where both the countries have the same common goal and aim.
However, there are exceptions to the case. The tennis stars Rohan Bopanna and Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi have stunned the world with their unfailing partnership on tennis courts. Together, they are slamming away several victories, leaving the best of the best struggling for survival. Their amazing partnership and style has left the world of tennis amazed. They have recently stormed into the men’s doubles finals in the US open that is going on currently. Together, they beat Argentina’s Eduardo Schwank and Horacio Zaballos 7-6 (7/5), 6-4 on Wednesday, the 8th of spetember’10.
Their magical partnership has left the world breathless and expectant for more. But what is even greater than their victory on the tennis court is the wonderful achievement of unifying the two nations. When the duo battle together on court, for the first time ever in 60 years, the combined audience of India and Pakistan pray together for their victory, and cheer them uniformly. The audience of the two nations, for the first time, sit on the same side of the court, and pray for a common cause. These 2 shining stars have set all sportspersons and celebrities a wonderful example of how individual contributions can help towards unification of the nations, and peace. They have helped to negate, up to some extent, what religious fundamentalists have been trying to do since the past six decades.
Both of these players share an incredible friendship and partnership that can only come from a great sense of professionalism, sensibility and culture. Their values and sense of oneness have proved to the world that even today, in a world where people are always looking for excuses to kill each other, or cheat one another for personal gain, there is still hope left. Hope for love, for prosperity and unity. Hope that one day, India and Pakistan will forget the wars of their ancestors, and will look at the bigger picture. Hope that the governments of the two nations, some day, will not be able to fool the people anymore, who want the same things. Hope that one day, the people of the two countries can finally put aside their biases, and understand the truth.
We salute these heroes, and hope that their partnership remains strong and successful for several years. Unfortunately, we have seen some of the best partnerships in history break due to differences of opinion and ego. We hope that Bopanna and Quereshi break the trend, and remain strong for many years to come. They are indeed shining examples of what laurels can be achieved when two great minds and talents come together for a common purpose.
By: Anindita Chatterjee
Tags: Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi, India, Pakistan, Rohan Bopanna, Sports, Sports World, Tennis, US Open, World Sports
