In this episode of PSP, host Nii Wallace-Bruce discusses the intense cricket rivalry between India and Pakistan, focusing on their recent match at the 2025 Champions Trophy, where India successfully chased down Pakistan's score of 241 runs [0:18]. Joined by guest Dr. Omar Khokhar from Sportsnection, they delve into Pakistan's performance and the need for more aggressive and innovative play styles [1:07]. The conversation transitions to the historical context of Pakistani cricket and the revival of major cricket tournaments in Pakistan after 30 years [3:53].

They then explore the development and potential of cricket trading cards, a project that connects past legends and current players [5:01], and discuss the growing interest in physical collectibles over digital ones [9:32]. The episode concludes with a discussion on the future of cricket tournaments, advocating for more triangular and quadrangular series to maintain viewer interest [16:33].

-----------

Sportsnection:

Twitter

Instagram

---------------

Check out our website

#NoSportLeftBehind

Leave a review and let us know what you thought!

Opening and closing music courtesy of Jeremiah Alves - "Evermore".

Hello, my name is Ne Wallace Bruce.

2

I'm your host of PSP for today,

and we are talking cricket.

3

We're talking the biggest

rivalry in sports.

4

India versus Pakistan

5

this rivalry has caused

diplomatic tension.

6

It's more than cricket

when these two teams.

7

Now, , to get you caught up, Pakistan

did score 241 runs in their 50 overs.

8

They all bowled out, and India

ended up chasing down the total

9

for the loss of only 4 wickets.

10

They scored 244 runs from 42 and a

half overs, so they won the game.

11

They're close to the knockout rounds,

while Pakistan are facing an early exit.

12

But it's an early exit from a

tournament they are hosting.

13

They haven't hosted major

cricket for 30 years.

14

It was 1996 was the last time we saw

major tournament cricket in Pakistan.

15

So there's progress in some aspects

off the field, but still work to

16

be done for Pakistan to get back

17

We're going to be talking about some

of those plays from that era, but

18

to get you started, we're going to

talk a little bit about what went

19

wrong for Pakistan in the tournament.

20

here it is.

21

Myself and Dr.

22

Omar Kokafa's Force In Action.

23

Enjoy.

24

Nii Wallace-Bruce: Omar,

let's go into the game.

25

Let's consider this therapy for you.

26

Pakistan , they didn't have the

best start, but what did you see

27

from their top order batting wise?

28

Dr Omar Kokhar: I think Pakistan batting,

29

The strike rate and strike rate to

your viewers means, how many runs

30

are you scoring per ball and you've

got to score more aggressively.

31

You gotta score faster.

32

You've got to be more, industrious

with your shot selection and

33

you just don't see those things.

34

Then today's batting, for example, just

that second phase of the game where

35

they really just blocked and we're

going at three or four runs per over.

36

They weren't really able

to recover from that.

37

They did have a nice

foundation at 150 for two.

38

And there's a hope that maybe

you can double your 30 over

39

score and get to 280 odd.

40

But when you kept losing wickets, you

got to 240, which was, 40 runs short,

41

especially with a batting lineup like

India that can chase anything down.

42

with Pakistan batting, we haven't

caught up with the rest of the world

43

in terms of innovation and aggression.

44

those are the two things Pakistan

needs to look at in the future.

45

Nii Wallace-Bruce: Yeah, I

would say that the score of

46

241 is definitely a throwback.

47

It's a score that would have seen

20, 25 years ago in one day career.

48

as you said, the infiltration of IPL

and T20 cricket has made 50 over cricket

49

a lot more fast paced, the strike is

turning over quicker, and the teams that

50

have embraced 2020 cricket are seeing the

benefits in the longer form of the game

51

I wonder, do you think we'll see more

52

Do you think they'll get

more of that opportunity?

53

I know there's some restrictions.

54

We don't have to get into that.

55

But, what do you see for the future

in terms of the way Pakistan plays?

56

Can you see that changing down the line?

57

Dr Omar Kokhar: I think Pakistan

players are highly coveted on

58

the T20 circuit around the globe

in all the different leagues.

59

I think because, the tracks in Pakistan

are so flat and don't really help

60

the bowler, the problem is that when

you come up against good competition

61

or a pitch that may not be helping

you very much, you get found out.

62

And that's what happens when we

have the Pakistan Super League,

63

which is a great league, one of

the best quality leagues there is.

64

But, if you're used to playing on those

tracks, then you go to a different pitch.

65

You get found out for technique.

66

We saw that a couple

times today against spin.

67

We had Kuldeep Yadav

68

and once The spinners bog you down,

it impacts the rest of the game.

69

Nii Wallace-Bruce: Yeah, it's almost

like it's very hard to get out of that,

70

you can see the balls drying up, and

you're running out of opportunities,

71

you have to signal your intent

early as a team, batting first, one

72

thing Hanson signaled early is a

release of cards that's coming out.

73

We're going to talk about that

later on, but it's going to

74

continue with the Champions Trophy.

75

It is a landmark event.

76

it's the first major cricket tournament

in Pakistan in at least 30 years.

77

thinking back to the 1996,

tournament held there.

78

I'm aging myself a bit.

79

Dr.

80

Omar, Was that?

81

The peak of Pakistani cricket, I'm

thinking of Shahab Akhtar, Waqar

82

Yunus, Inzamamul Haq, Yohan, Was that

the golden age of Pakistan cricket?

83

Dr Omar Kokhar: I think so.

84

in 1992 they won the whole enchilada.

85

They won the World Cup in 1996.

86

There were co-hosts of the

World Cup and they had a great

87

run until the quarter final.

88

people don't remember is that

89

They made it to the final and

they were actually tip to FA

90

Beat Australia in that final.

91

That was the highlight years

where you had was seeing AKA show.

92

Seclan, Amr Sohail, Saeed

Anwar, Inzoumah Mulhaq, Ah, the

93

batting just Shai the Frithi.

94

Just man to man.

95

Cricket's a religion there, so you

have to invest and make sure that

96

you are always on par with the best.

97

Nii Wallace-Bruce: You gotta

always be innovating and

98

finding different ways to win.

99

That's how you stay at the top of your

game, and in line with your competitors.

100

You're listening to PSP with Nii

Wallace Bruce, and our guest, Dr.

101

Irma Koka from Sports Connection.

102

We've been talking about the Men's 2025

Champions Trophy in Pakistan and Dubai.

103

And also, we want to talk about a new

development from Sports Connection.

104

They have a new release

of cards coming up.

105

It came out this week and in line

with the Champions Trophy tournament

106

We're going to see Some cards

from yesteryear, Classic cards.

107

otherwise known as the

All Stars of Cricket.

108

the first series is now

Available in Dubai, the U.

109

S.,

110

and other countries where you can

get top quality cricketing cards.

111

Dr.

112

Romar, do you want to

take us through that?

113

this

114

Dr Omar Kokhar: has been a labor of love

that started off between me and my kid.

115

Actually, I was in Melbourne

for the, T20 World years ago.

116

And when I was FaceTiming him, like

any dad does, I said, Hey, buddy,

117

what do you want, from Australia?

118

And we collect baseball

basketball football cards,

119

he asked for cricket cards.

120

He wanted some Bob Freedie cards.

121

And I looked, and I couldn't find any,

so it got me thinking I'm a collector.

122

I spend enough money on cards.

123

with cricket, there's not a whole lot

that led to me looking into my network

124

from high school and university.

125

thankfully, as it were, we weren't

too far, removed from some of these

126

legends that I described from the 1990s.

127

And so we came out with our initial Set

called Legends of Cricket Pakistan edition

128

last year sold out on card autographs.

129

We got graded by PSA,

ebay, the whole thing.

130

And so we've just taken a

step further from there.

131

Now we've gone global.

132

We've got players from South Africa,

Australia, India, the UK, West Indies.

133

And to me, I see it as something

that can connect the legends.

134

To current state, and I think it's a way

for legends to celebrate what they've

135

given to cricket and how they've moved

the game forward we've got a range of

136

talent in our roster and it's great for

kids now to know who the heroes were.

137

The way I see it is,

it's almost like a Dr J.

138

Michael Jordan.

139

type of thing where everyone knows

LeBron James now, but not Julius Erving.

140

they've heard of Jordan, but how

much have they seen of him, right?

141

And I think this is a great way to

bring people together and celebrate

142

the history of cricket and also promote

a potential hobby where, you know,

143

trading cards and memorabilia is just

growing exponentially, as it will

144

over the next five odd years and What

people want now is the authenticity.

145

They want something where, the

player touched this card or signed

146

off on this card or held this bat.

147

we're trying not just to create a product,

but also to create the connection.

148

And that's really how the

company name also came forth.

149

we're excited about this product.

150

the breadth of the players we've included

and we've got other products coming up

151

the quality Is, something not seen in the

trading card space in terms of cricket.

152

that's what I've tried

to create with my team.

153

Nii Wallace-Bruce: Yes,

you've gone far and wide.

154

players representing India, West Indies.

155

Pakistan, Australia,

England, and South Africa.

156

did you have to go out

to each of these places?

157

How were you able to conduct

the logistics of, meeting the

158

players, if you don't mind?

159

It's

160

Dr Omar Kokhar: a mixed bag.

161

cricket is growing in the United

States, and so a lot of these

162

folks are coming stateside.

163

and so a trip to New York or Dallas is

simpler to meet them and introduce them

164

to the concept and get things done in some

cases, such as Australia or South Africa,

165

we created a DHL and FedEx account.

166

that's how we get things back and forth.

167

we have representatives there

to authenticate the signings.

168

it's been a fun experience.

169

it's really challenged parts of

the brain as a full time practicing

170

gastroenterologist, parts of my

brain get, stressed by this work.

171

I'm hoping that's a good thing.

172

Hopefully it'll stave off early dementia.

173

That's the research I read.

174

Hopefully it'll be a win.

175

Nii Wallace-Bruce: Hopefully.

176

I have no doubt it will be.

177

I'm sure.

178

it'll definitely help with the

stimulation and the What's the word here?

179

That's why you're the doctor and I'm not.

180

Dr Omar Kokhar: Now neurologic

disease is becoming a problem.

181

Parkinson's and AIDS associated dementia.

182

And what we're learning is that the

concept of neuroplasticity in the neurons

183

and the biocells of your brain where

The more you stretch, the more you think

184

differently, the more you're challenged.

185

That's how those cells remain

pliable and don't stagnate.

186

And that's One way I justify it to myself.

187

Sometimes when Sometimes when I get

bogged down updating the website,

188

opening a shipping account, or updating

a listing A lot of it, I do myself

189

with my fingerprints all over it.

190

Hopefully that's a nice byproduct that,

will stave off some neurological illness.

191

Nii Wallace-Bruce: I would encourage

everyone to keep the brain active.

192

Listening to podcasts

Doing brain exercises.

193

Yeah, just reading books, obviously.

194

Purchasing trading cards.

195

That's going to be a part of it as

well with the statistics on the back.

196

do whatever you can to stay off what

is a debilitating illness in dementia.

197

Now, I wanted to talk about

trading cards on the macro.

198

North America this winter, we

had a big story in baseball.

199

the Pittsburgh Pirates placed a

bounty on the Paul Skeens rookie

200

card, the one of one version.

201

they offered 30 years of season tickets

behind home plate, I believe it was a

202

signed jersey, and a couple of other,

once in a lifetime goodies to the

203

person that surrendered said card.

204

I think he also got to meet Paul Skeens

and spend another game with his partner.

205

the card was scooped up by

an 11 year old in California.

206

They offered to, to let the card go

to auction with proceeds given to the

207

fire recovery effort in Los Angeles.

208

my question to you, Dr.

209

Omar is, has that sparked new

interest in the card trading game?

210

I

211

Dr Omar Kokhar: think It's just augmented

the interest that was already there.

212

Since COVID the new found interest

in cards and, there was a time where

213

people were looking at NFTs and

digital collectibles, but it comes

214

back to, holding and collecting and.

215

Don't underestimate how a lot of the

starts, which is, certainly in my

216

case, which was, me and my son, get

a pack of cards, and we open them up,

217

and we look at, hey, who did you get?

218

Who did you get?

219

that's part of the fun and the bond

that's created, for a lot of people,

220

that's what it's all about, they remember

cracking cards open with their dad, or

221

uncle, In a world that's becoming so

digitized, I think that's where physical

222

collectibles, whether it's memorabilia or

trading cards, have really roared back.

223

people are craving that connection

with their friends, with their

224

buddies, with their family members,

where we're not on our phones.

225

We're holding things, and talking

to each other, which, as is just

226

getting more and more, more and more.

227

Just, it's rare.

228

We connect behind screens and so

collectibles gives us an opportunity

229

to connect without a screen.

230

I think that's what people subconsciously

were reacting to during COVID and

231

that's only carried on since COVID.

232

I think it's great for everybody involved.

233

The players, local card

shops are doing fantastic.

234

And it brings, family members together.

235

I don't see a downside, and

that's what I saw, where we didn't

236

really have that in cricket.

237

And I think that's the opportunity

for folks to, to connect with their

238

kids, with their loved ones, over

their shared passion of the game

239

Nii Wallace-Bruce: it's a beautiful thing.

240

It's talking points, not only the

names, it's also some statistics,

241

some of the key moments that

some of these players have had.

242

you touched on, the proliferation

of computers and digitization

243

could you ever see your offering of

cards, expand, have a NFT offering?

244

Dr Omar Kokhar: I don't know about

NFT, that's a Whole different subset,

245

It's commercial And blockchain based

Now, what I will say we will likely

246

do, sooner rather than later, is

something called a digital twin.

247

And a digital twin would mean that if

you owned a physical asset, you would

248

have a digital twin of that asset that

you could share with your friends.

249

Now how do you attach

that to a blockchain?

250

Do you put a monetization on that?

251

I think it's to be determined.

252

I think we know what we have with

physical trading card products.

253

I think with digital, I think there

was something about three or four

254

years ago with the NBA, with FIFA.

255

They looked at digital collectibles.

256

I don't know the long term interest

level which informs the amount of,

257

time and financial investment At the

moment, we're focused on physical.

258

With potentially a digital twin, we

want is for someone in India or Pakistan

259

to share with their new buddy in

Australia, Hey, look what I pulled in

260

my physical pack, and show the digital

twin That's something we're looking at

261

Nii Wallace-Bruce: And something

right at our fingertips is the

262

first series of cards, available for

release if you order now, you get

263

shipping from April, is that correct?

264

Dr Omar Kokhar: Yes, we're still

getting signatures and autographs

265

back from the legends in this

266

release.

267

printing is ongoing, collation is ongoing,

just waiting for a couple of signatures

268

to come back we're looking at an April

ship date, and I think collectors

269

are going to really what they pull.

270

I think they're going to enjoy

the quality, the inserts, the

271

rarity of some of the cards.

272

the autographs we have are

our dream team of cricket.

273

several have never ever signed before.

274

So I think there's a novelty

factor of getting their first,

275

authenticated trading cards.

276

Nii Wallace-Bruce: Yeah, that's special.

277

Literally one of a kind.

278

after this release, There's going to

279

Dr Omar Kokhar: Yes, part of our thinking

is that we look at this as a cyclical

280

process, as our word gets out that we're

a bonafide company, a passion project,

281

looking to connect people, we've had

people reaching out as that happens,

282

we'll have more legends come to the fray.

283

We'll have more product out there.

284

Eventually, we need to pivot into the

current, ecosystem, the cricket boards

285

and leagues, such as IPL and CPL.

286

until now, there's been unawareness

around the concept of trading

287

cards, especially rookie cards.

288

I've had several people reach

out to me in terms of the IPL.

289

When someone comes out in Premier

League and some guy has a killer first

290

season, they literally have asked Hey,

how come you don't have a rookie card?

291

And I'm like , We should.

292

We could generate interest, we could

generate value, we could generate wealth.

293

And so we've had some preliminary

conversations with leagues and

294

franchises, eventually, you have to look

at What people want from collectibles,

295

you want rookie cards, right?

296

You want to potentially collect

something that could increase in

297

value down the road as something that

you can watch on TV now instead of

298

watching them on YouTube highlights.

299

Nii Wallace-Bruce: I think the last

summer, we also saw quite an explosion

300

when it came to anything rookie

related for Caitlin Clark in the WNBA.

301

Do you think we could see,

some women's cricket cards

302

coming soon from Sportsnexion?

303

Dr Omar Kokhar: The WPL in India

has been fantastic The quality of

304

players, the cricket is top notch.

305

I think that's a huge potential

segment, They deserve the exposure,

306

the recognition , their battles and

307

journey.

308

it's personal to me as a 12 year old,

daughter's dad who wants to play cricket,

309

how do we get our girls into cricket,

how do we get the women into cricket,

310

so definitely something we're exploring.

311

Nii Wallace-Bruce: Very good.

312

speaking of exploring, I want

to touch on the T20 World Cup

313

because that's special to me.

314

Being the fact that it's 10 years

since the World Cup, the 50 overs

315

World Cup for men was held in

Australia I was at the final.

316

I was lucky to get down

to the MCG for that.

317

How did you find the MCG

as a stadium and experience

318

Dr Omar Kokhar: The first

time you get off the train we

319

were there for Pakistan India.

320

we were staying near Chinatown

and got on the tram the atmosphere

321

and carnival had started.

322

when you get out And see the

MCG in all its glory, you think

323

about it's test match history.

324

for someone from Pakistan

325

looking at the MCG from that point of

view, and the Shane Warren statue, you

326

get goosebumps Shane was from, Victoria.

327

a local boy.

328

his athletic ability, was transcendent.

329

People don't know, in the mid 90s,

Nike signed him with Michael Jordan.

330

think about that, it

boggles your imagination.

331

That's how larger than life he was.

332

walking the MCG and seeing the pitch,

the next day, the Melbourne Sun, I

333

believe is the newspaper, they had an

article, and they said something that

334

you could hear Exactly how the game

was going from three kilometers away.

335

That's how loud it was.

336

Nii Wallace-Bruce: Wow.

337

Yes.

338

Shout out to the Herald Song.

339

the Daily Tablo, always on top of sport.

340

Melbourne is arguably the sporting

capital of the world Now, , Dr.

341

Oma, do you think we're finding

the balance in terms of the

342

amount of cricket Is there still

too much cricket being played?

343

Dr Omar Kokhar: That's a really good

question, and my buddies and I have

344

bandied that around quite a bit.

345

And I think we've overshot the

runway in terms of leagues.

346

I think we need to bring

it back to countries.

347

But what I definitely think is outdated

now is bilateral tours and series.

348

I think there's a couple of landmark

tours, like the Ashes, the Border

349

Gavaskar Trophy, the, West Indies, I

think it's the , Frank Worrell Trophy.

350

Yeah, Frank Worrell Trophy.

351

But what I would love to see more

of is triangular and quadrangular.

352

You have to look no further than just last

week, the Four Nations Cup and hockey.

353

There are so many people who

had no idea about hockey who

354

tuned in to watch USA Canada.

355

That's what we need.

356

We need more tournaments, in the USA,

in Dallas or Fort Lauderdale where

357

we have the cricket tournaments.

358

we need the Pakistan India

West Indies Trilateral Series.

359

there would not be a single seat empty

we need, a USA Netherlands Scotland

360

England quadrangular tournament hosted,

at Lourdes or in the Netherlands or

361

Ireland.

362

or in Dubai.

363

Dubai is a fantastic sporting capital.

364

How do we get India, Pakistan,

Sri Lanka, Bangladesh.

365

A four nation series.

366

I think that's where we need To go

to make tours more meaningful , no

367

one wants to watch two teams

play each other five times

368

It gets boring.

369

Nii Wallace-Bruce: as someone who grew up

with what was initially called the Benson

370

Hedges World Series, and then had a number

of different Names down the line, but it

371

was essentially the triangular, sometimes

quadrangular series in Australia.

372

It was a, always a highlight of the

summer when it was Australia plus

373

whoever they played in the test.

374

And then a third team that was invited,

it was, yeah, seeing the competitiveness.

375

It was like a mini world cup every summer

and it was something to look forward to.

376

Everyone played with passion.

377

teams were hungry and

going after it every time,

378

And the recent triangular series that

Pakistan was involved in, yeah, that

379

was definitely one to watch as well.

380

New Zealand, they're often the sleeping

giant in terms of limited overs cricket,

381

but they'll definitely be a team to

watch in future tournaments as well.

382

Dr.

383

Omar, it's been a great chat.

384

Where can we find more about

Sports In Action and Series 1

385

of the All Star Trading Cards?

386

Dr Omar Kokhar: Follow our

website at sportsinaction.

387

com and follow us on Instagram

and Facebook at Sports In Action.

388

if you're a fan of sports cricket

and a fan of collectibles, you'll

389

want to check us out because you're

going to love what we're doing.

390

Nii Wallace-Bruce: You

definitely want to see that.

391

one day, you'll be scrolling through and

just see Wasim Akram on SportsConnection.

392

You wonder, how did that happen?

393

That is the SportsConnection experience.

394

It's sports by name and connections by

nature, you're going to want to check

395

that out I've been your host Nemo Spruce

and this has been another episode of PSP.