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SLAM! Sports 1999 World Cup SLAM! Cricket 1999 WORLD CUP INTERACTIVE ALSO ON SLAM!  |
Wednesday, June 9, 1999India erupts after cricket winNEW DELHI (AP) -- From street corners in crowded cities to the rarefied battlefront in the Himalayas, Indians erupted in celebration today after their team handed arch-rival Pakistan a stunning 47-run defeat in the cricket World Cup."We want nothing more now. For us, India has won the World Cup," said Surendra Rastogi, a student, as he set off firecrackers after the match ended around midnight. India is unsure of even a berth in the semifinals. But many among the millions of cricket fans said they won't mind if India is knocked out in the Super Six stage. "Now Pakistan knows who's better. I love this," retired university professor S.B. Misra said. Among those who congratulated the team were Indian President K.R. Narayanan and Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. High up in the mountains of Kashmir, hundreds of Indian soldiers fighting intruders along the border with Pakistan kept up with the match on crackling transistor radios. Many said the cricket victory would inspire them. "We will do the same to the intruders," Press Trust of India quoted an unnamed soldier as saying in Srinagar, capital of Jammu-Kashmir. "We have won the battle of nerves and we will surely win the battle of bullets," he said. Indian soldiers have been pounding the mountaintops to flush out what they call Afghan guerrillas backed by Pakistani soldiers. Cricket is wildly popular across India, its top players national icons. Today's newspapers made the win front-page news, comparing it with the battle in Kashmir. Pak Falls to India's Line of Control, The Pioneer said, referring to fighting along the cease-fire line that divides Kashmir between the two neighbors. Reborn India Kill Pak, The Asian Age newspaper said. The Indian Express newspaper combined the cricket victory with India's offer for peace talks with Pakistan on Saturday. India Queers Pak Pitch, Game for Talks on June 12, it said. |