Indian and Pakistan fans had organised group viewings in restaurants and homes, while IT professionals told PTI that many Indians working in British companies did not turn up for work.

In Leicester, which has a large population of Indian origin, thousands of jubilant Indian fans poured into Belgrave Road, the hub of Asian business and culture.

Similar celebrations have been reported in Southall, Wembley, Manchester and Birmingham.
Rush-hour traffic came to a standstill as supporters waving Indian flags, banging drums, blowing horns, sang and danced through the streets after the final Pakistan wicket fell.

Some supporters clambered on top of buses and vans that became stuck in jams as police tried to clear a path for traffic through the huge crowds of happy supporters.

Fireworks were also let off.

Leicester-based Pulkesh Thakor, said: "It was amazing. For us, this was bigger than England versus Argentina at football. There isn't anything bigger in sport.

"I thought Pakistan might be able to get 260 runs, but I started to relax when the wickets began to tumble. When the last wicket went down the whole place erupted."

Another Indian fan, Kamal Jattan, said: "This was the World Cup final for us. What happens on Saturday hardly matters, though we will still be watching."

The police struggled to clear a path for traffic caught up in the swell of people, but said they had not had any reports of trouble in Leicester following the match.