'He has been right twice previously,' I tell her. ‘He can't keep getting it right. I'm sure his information must be wrong sometimes. Law of averages and all that.'
"As Pakistan's innings begins we are both gripped by a feeling of surreal fear. Not the usual fear that a fan holds in his heart when watching a sporting contest; the feeling of not knowing whether his team will succeed, fail horribly or acquit themselves with pride so he too can feel proud; the one which ties the stomach in knots and makes the heart beat faster, reverberating against the rib cage. It is an anxiety of a totally different kind inspired by the feeling that what is being played out in front of our eyes is planned, while desperately hoping that it is not. The stomach turns; the heart sinks. ‘It could all be over very quickly, Chezza,' I say reassuringly. ‘Pakistan could be two down for nothing and then they won't be cruising to a hundred.' ‘Yes, there is that,' she says.
"Kamran Akmal, the Pakistan opening batsman, hits the first ball and the last ball of the first over of the reply for four. Cherrene and I exchange worried glances. The first of many I suspect. We are not put out of our misery early as, thanks to Akmal's dashing blade, Pakistan start well. At the end of the eighth over they are 43 for no loss, scoring at a rate of 5.37 an over.
"‘Well, they are certainly cruising at the moment,' Cherrene says.‘Do you think that would stand up in court?' I joke.Akmal's is the first wicket to fall. Attempting to crash a square drive through point, he is undone by a slower delivery from Zaheer Khan and he guides the ball into the fielder's hands. The score is 44 for one.
"Asad Shafiq joins Mohammad Hafeez at the crease. Their progress is serene and the clatter of wickets that we hope for does not materialise. Hafeez is out in the 16th over.
"The Cricinfo commentary describes his wicket: ‘What was Hafeez thinking? Again, yet again, a lovely 30 to 40 and he has combusted. He went for a paddle sweep, yeah a paddle sweep, to a full delivery outside off stump and edged it to Dhoni. Oh dear. Pressure? Or overconfidence?'
"Pakistan steady the ship. A cliché it may be, but one that has a double meaning in this context. With Shafiq and Younis Khan they are cruising. Shafiq turns the fifth ball of the 23rd over off his pads to take two runs and bring up Pakistan's hundred. Their run rate is 4.34. They require a further 161 runs from 27 overs. There is no doubt they are going well.
‘OK Chezza,' I say, ‘They have got to a hundred pretty easily but this is where it gets interesting.'
"Of allegations about corruption in this match, Haroon Lorgat, then the ICC chief executive, stated: ‘The ICC has no reason or evidence to require an investigation into this match. It is indeed sad for spurious claims to be made which only serve to cause doubt on the semi-final of one of the most successful ICC Cricket World Cups ever.' ‘Read the next bit of the script.'
