My Passion for Pakistan
Hi, I'm Mr Pakistan but most of the other ambassadors call me Mr P!
I was born and raised in England, but my heart lives in Pakistan. My love for the country goes far beyond just supporting the team. I have a deep passion for the culture and history and I'm an enthusiastic traveller having visited as far North as Hunza Valley all the way down South to Clifton Beach in Karachi. I lived for 4 years in Lahore and in that time did plenty of sightseeing in Swat Valley, Azad Kashmir, KKH and most of Punjab. Top of my bucket list is K2 Base Camp closely followed by Shandur Polo Festival and Khunjerab Pass.
I've been watching cricket since the 80's on tv and going to matches since 1987.
In 2010 during the Pakistan- Australia T20 series at Edgbaston I wore my outfit for the first time having spent 2 weeks making it at home. (thanks to my mum and wife). Shortly after those matches Pakistan cricket dropped to its lowest ever point when the no-ball saga happened. We were the most hated nation in the world and I know a lot of fans stopped watching cricket after that but I knew nobody else can save Pakistan. Only Pakistan can save Pakistan so I stepped up my support and met The Sheikh of Pakistan and together we created a movement that has become stronger year by year. We wanted the honest players to realise there are still fans out there who love and support them so we started travelling abroad on our own expenses.
Soon the players started recognising us, the TV cameramen started seeing regular faces and the fans in the stadiums started recognising us. We bought a colourful, vibrant and cheerful atmosphere in the stands and soon we grew from strength to strength with more and more fans making outfits. It wasn't easy juggling family life and work but my support took me to many countries around the world including Australia x2, New Zealand, Sri Lanka x2, UAE, West Indies, South Africa!
My Journey
In 2015 I won a global Moneygram competition and became the 'World's Ultimate Cricket Fan 2015' beating 11,000 entrants. Moneygram flew me to Australia and New Zealand to watch the 2015 WC finals.
In between watching matches we have donated our time at charity events for Imran Khan Cancer Appeal, Shahid Afridi Foundation, Saeed Ajmal International Cricket Academy amongst others. I have also climbed Mount Snowdon and Scafell Pike in my outfit for charity and also ran The London Marathon and trekked to Everest Base Camp for charity.
It's not always easy dressing up every match but bringing a smile to the fans' faces getting their respect, and duas is a reward in itself. It has been an absolute honour to wear the green and live the dream. I've always said the players represent the country on the field and us fans represent the country in the stands. Love and respect to you all. Keep up the support, and I hope to see you at a match sometime.
Pakistan Zindabad!