Country geared to make a memory

Will there be one final flurry from Shakib Al Hasan?Photo: STAR

Years from now we will ask ourselves where we were on the night of March 20, 2012. It might have already been a week of exhilaration and it may even get better today, but the precise moment of achievement lingers on as the sweetest memory, be it in politics or sports.
South Africans, irrespective of ethnicity, can recall exactly where they were when they heard of Nelson Mandela's release from prison. Those who listened to Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman's seminal March 7 speech remember what they felt like at that given moment.
It is the moment of victory that everyone keeps in their heart as a priceless gem. For sports, Spaniards will not forget Andreas Iniesta's epic extra-time winner that made them World Champions; Jamaicans will singularly recall Usain Bolt's mind-bending feat to break the 100m world record at the Beijing Olympics.
Over the past 24 hours, people across the country have discussed in great details about their moment of joy. When Nasir Hossain's on-drive went past the fielder, the whole country rose up to celebrate.
So did a young man who lives in the Agargaon slum. Saiful is a rickshawpuller who plies the Mirpur road for half a day. He can't afford to take a break even for a day but when he was going past a TV showroom on Tuesday evening, he got down and started to watch Bangladesh playing Sri Lanka.
"When we won, I couldn't see what was happening. I was pushed to the back so when the people at the front started to jump and shout, I did the same," he said yesterday.
"I like how Shakib Al Hasan bats and bowls. He can do everything. He is like a film hero," said Saiful.
Shamim works in a bakery but as he watched the game, business took a backseat. It was the same with housewives, bankers, students and bus conductors. Everyone made sure they were in front of the television in the final overs, despite the time of the night.
"I was at the office, watching the game with my colleagues. When Shakib got out, I thought it was all over so I was thinking of going home.
"But somehow Nasir and Riyad got us to victory but you know, those first moments of that partnership were so nerve-wrecking," he said.
The beauty of the Tigers' victory is that the public will have another occasion to celebrate and they are already making swift plans. "We will watch the match from 2:00pm tomorrow. Business will be slow but who knows when such a day will come again?" said Anwar, who works at a construction materials store in Mirpur.
Another who made ambitious plans was Sohel, a bus conductor. "I will ask the bus owner to give me leave [when the match is on]. I bought a jersey and I will wear it when they play tomorrow," he said.
And there is the SMS sent by South Point School to let parents know of the shortened class-timings for Thursday, "by 12 noon", so that nobody misses the Asia Cup final. It is the same with several other schools in the city.
Those watching from home would request, plead and even threaten the power authorities so that electricity is not compromised with after 2:00pm.
It promises to be that kind of a day, as was Tuesday; a day that nobody wants to forget.