Qalandars' city defies political turmoil.

Saeed Khan, in his mid-twenties was curiously looking outside from the window of a Speedo Bus onto the Jail Road lined with neon-light cutouts posing different batting and bowling actions and huge hoardings declaring the metropolis 'Qalandars' city'.

'I am from Swabi, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and visiting my cousins who live here,'' he replied, when asked about his origin, pointing towards two smiling youths, who seemed to be his age-fellows. Obviously Zalmi backers, the youngsters were hopeful of the victory of their favourite team led by Babar Azam.

Outside the Gaddafi Stadium, cricket seemed to have proved an effective antidote to the hangover caused by the pitched battles occurring just 48 hours ago between the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf workers and law-enforcement agencies at Zaman Park, where the former kaptan of a world cup-winning side, now heading an opposition party, is holed up to avoid arrest in two cases which, according to him, are politically-motivated.

At the Gulberg's Main Boulevard entrance to the road leading to Gaddafi Stadium, cars and SUVs in jumbled queues were honking horns with their occupants restlessly waiting for their turn to be cleared by police officials deployed for the security.

Not far away, people jostle at the outer checkpoint manned by police personnel to get frisked. As soon as they cross the security check, vendors selling flags of the rival teams and other spectators' items try to grab their attention.

Moving ahead to the well-lit roundabout, you find families and friends greeting each other at the rendezvous they'd agreed to meet up. Some others were trying to guide, on their mobile phones, those who they thought were getting late for the game.

'I was quite...