India and Pakistan is one of the most followed rivalries in world
sport. But beyond the big moments, the
highlights, the patchy highlights on YouTube, the
scorecards, what really makes it special is how people have
watched this game from both sides of the border.
For many of us fans, this rivalry is tied to players and
eras. Wasim and Wakar running new
ball, Saklen essentially changing how spin was bold and
being the master of his art and the cough of Shoaib.
I mean with running, running in raw pace, that Calcutta test, I
mean having Sachin carry all those expectations.
The 2004 tour. Sevag taking the game on from
Ball 1. And of course, in recent years,
I mean Kohli, I mean the love that he's got from Pakistan, the
the singular performance of Amir in that 2017 Champions Trophy
final. For some of us, it's childhood
memories, watching these matches with our families, maybe
planning days around this game. And, and remembering exactly
where we were for certain moments.
For a lot of others, it's probably been about the group
chats, the debates, the emotions that that have stayed like long
after these matches have ended. I mean, you only have to be on
the Internet to know that there is probably no knock that's more
hyped than Kohli's 82 versus Pakistan in the 2022 World Cup.
This episode isn't about analysis.
It's not even about breaking down performances or decisions
or anything of. That sort, it's essentially
about the people who've lived these matches and this rivalry.
As fans, we reached out to supporters from both India and
Pakistan and asked them to share what this rivalry means to them.
Their memories, their feelings, their stories.
So for the next little while, you'll hear it in the voices of
the fans themselves. Hi everyone, my name is Nawab
Hassan Hussain Qureshi. I'm an agriculturalist, a sports
management professional and a sports analyst.
I was the former head of Digital Media for Multan Sultans in the
PSL and I was part of the Southern Punjab Cricket Board
here in domestic cricket in Pakistan.
And ever since I can remember, cricket has been a very, very
big part of my life, been a big part of my family.
My late uncle is a former first class cricketer, Nawab Ashiq
Hussain Qureshi. He's also someone who did a lot
of work for Pakistani cricket at grassroots level.
He also did a lot of work for seniors.
Cricket from my grandmother's side, my paternal grandmother's
side. I'm related to your very own
Nawab Mansoor Ali Khan Patodi, who was her first cousin,
obviously one of India's great captains, and then her Mamu
Iftahar Patodi, Nawab senior played for both England and
India. So cricket's always been a very
big part of my life. It was just the game that my
family loved more than anything. I have memories of watching
cricket from a very young age, with my grandfather, with my
uncle, playing with my brothers, with my friends.
I would say till for the 1st 18 to 19 years of my life, cricket
pretty much dominated everything in my life.
And obviously a big part of supporting Pakistan, a big part
of watching Pakistani cricket is the incredible rivalry between
India and Pakistan. So around the time when I grew
up, India and Pakistan, I don't have a lot of memories.
I know they played a lot through the 80s, but I don't have too
many vivid memories of that. My very first clear memory is of
Arkil Javed's hat trick against India in 1991.
And then, you know, Pakistan won that game, Ark.
It took 7 wickets. I remember losing the very first
World Cup match both the sides played, 1992, Pakistan losing.
And it's been pretty abysmal for us since then.
We've never beaten India in the 50 over World Cup.
We have one win in in T20 World Cup, obviously have a final loss
as well. So my, my strongest memories are
of when India and Pakistan started playing Test cricket
again in 1999, that those three games, Pakistan winning an
incredible game in, in Chennai, is, is just my, it's one of my
all time favorite Test matches. For everything that went on,
just the cricket, the crowd's reaction, just just what it was
like to seeing India, Pakistan play again.
Then Delhi, where India roared back to, to, you know, with Anil
Kumble's 10 wickets to tie the series.
And then the Asian Test Championship with the game at
Kolkata, which was such an incredible game, watching
Pakistan somehow find a way to win, that being 6 for 26.
And then all of my memories of I try and block out all the times
India beats us, which is quite a lot.
Now in the last sort of 5-6 years, the dominance from Indian
cricket has been incredible. It's been very one sided in
India for me for my money right now, easily the best team in the
world and have been for some time across formats.
I know they've had a bit of a rough run in tests recently, but
overall, I'd say the last 3-4 years they've been the best team
in the world and Pakistan has struggled to keep up to that.
So I, I kind of go back to earlier days.
I think about, you know, that that series in 99.
I look back to India store here in in Pakistan.
I was in Lahore for both the ODIs that Pakistan lost when
India came back from 2/1 down to win the series.
But my overriding memory of that tour is making friendships with
people from India, would come to watch the cricket in Pakistan,
lifelong friendships, people I'm still in touch with today.
I was very lucky to visit India in 2013.
It was an incredible visit. Just so wonderful to be there to
meet the people, to experience the love and kindness and
hospitality and just reconnecting with my friends who
I'd, who I'd met almost, you know, 7-8 years earlier when
India and Pakistan played each other.
And we're people I'm still in touch with today watching games
in college. I went to university in England,
watching games with Indian, you know, class school mates,
college mates and friends there. The 2003 World Cup, another not
so very nice moment for us. And then that, that incredible
series here. Then when Pakistan went to
India, that Bangalore Test match in the drawn series, 1, all
absolutely my favorite. I think if I had to pick one
game to be the best game of my life, it would be that with, you
know, Unis Khan and Zimam and then Pakistan taking the
wickets, just that strong Indian side, getting a draw at home and
then coming from 2 nil down to win that, that one day series
that that's a memory that stays with me.
And there's a memory that stays with me from, you know, when
Pakistan last played a bilateral in India in 2013, because that
series was also something. So it's always been about
incredible cricket. When I when I look at the insane
talent across both teams and I look at the legends and I think
of, you know, all the greats, Imran Khan, Kapil Dev, Javed
Miadat, Sunil Gavaskar, Wasim Akram, Sachin Tendulkar, the
list is endless. And then obviously you talk
about Virat Kohli. I mean, Virat Kohli, what he's
done to Pakistan, very few people have done and he is just
what an incredible honor it has been.
But also how horrendous it has been to see him beat us as much
as he has over that time. He's, he's just an incredible
player. And, you know, and my memories
of cricket off the field are, you know, watching games with
people, meeting strangers around the world, wherever you run into
them, you start talking about cricket.
It's something that unites us, something that we can talk
about. We'll we'll we'll have a bit of
ribbing, you know, but bug each other about head to heads or
World Cup records or things like that.
But there's always a bit of a laugh.
There's there's so much love for cricket between both sides and
it's just this rivalry is such an incredible rivalry.
And I'm hoping that we see that when this game happens.
And I'm hoping we see just the rivalry in the right spirit,
which I believe for most of its time it has been.
And you know, it's game. We have fun.
We we enjoy the banter and we watch the game.
But I, I, I'd like to hope that we do that while respecting each
other and while remembering that it is just a game and that, you
know, our two proud countries share an incredible past and
incredible history. But hopefully also that we can
work harder to make a way to share an incredible future based
on, on, on kindness and respect and tolerance for each other.
And I want to wish both teams all the best.
And I want to, I want to wish the Indian fans all the best for
not just this game, but for this tournament, playing at home,
another World Cup, you know, incredible Indian side.
And I just hope whatever happens on the day, the best team wins
and all of us get to enjoy an incredible game and remember how
lucky we are to to follow the teams that we do.
I know that was an incredible voice.
Not from now, I was in Qureshi but we ended up chatting after
he sent this and and I think he had some more stories so I.
Prodded him to send those as well as voice notes so those
follow. You must listen to it in full
and and laugh and and and enjoy what time it.
Was so, as I mentioned in, in the voice note, I at the stadium
met a gentleman, 2 gentlemen actually, who had come from
Delhi and they were watching the match.
And I was in the stand which had, I would say about 50% of
the stand at Gaddafi Stadium for the first game was Indian and
Pakistani fans. So we were all mixing with each
other. And I remember there were these
just before I'd entered the stadium, there were these
Sardarjis outside. And they were asking me that,
you know, after the game, they wanted to take a rickshaw and go
somewhere, but they were a bit worried, OK, They wanted to eat
a specific dish. You might be familiar with it
by, you know, goats trotters. But they were worried that they
didn't want to go somewhere where someone would take them
and it could be beef. And I told them in Lahore, you
don't get beef by, you get only goat buyer.
So they were very happy. I spoke to the rickshaw guy.
He said, so don't worry, I'll take them.
I got inside. There were these gentlemen from
somewhere in South India. We chatted very briefly.
Their their Hindi wasn't that good, but the English was
perfect. And they were a bit worried and
they were asking me, do you know, we have vegetarian
options? So I gave them this is before
social media and all this is 2005.
Some places I wrote down and they were, you know, we had a
wonderful chat. And then I met this gentleman
and his dad. And to this day, he's one of my
closest friends. I speak to him regularly.
And his dad had left Lahore in partition at the age of 18, and
it was his first time back in the city of his birth and the
city where he had sort of grown up.
And, you know, we spent the next three days taking uncle around,
showing him everywhere. He knew more of law than I did.
I moved to law as a teenager. He knew more of law than I did.
And then I insisted that they come over for for lunch to see
me meet my family. And, you know, we made a bond as
a family. And then I remember telling my
grandmother, OK, I wasn't sure if my friend Ashutosh and his
father are vegetarian or not, so let's keep some options for both
vegetarian and non vegetarian food.
And my daddy ended up having a lot of food made.
And yet all of it because in Pakistan we're just so used to
eating subsea and things together that we made it into.
So when I asked her apnik with sabzi bhunwai and she goes, Hana
here, there goes sabzi hai, beti ghost, aloo ghost, gobi ghost,
all made with lab. I say, daddy, that's not sabzi.
Thankfully, they were not vegetarian in this case.
But it's it's, it's just the most incredible memory at the
Gaddafi Stadium for the 4th and 5th ODIs.
I remember it was just an incredible feeling seeing so
many Indian fans walking with us together.
You know, people in blue shirts, green shirts walking together,
people meeting each other and speaking to each other.
And we were all walking towards the ground and we all entered
and I was in the stand that had a lot of fans from both sides.
And my, my overriding memory of that is just watching these
young Pakistani kids. They came up to someone sitting
near me, had an Indian flag. They asked him for his flag.
I think he's a little bit hesitant, but he gave it to them
and they ran around the entire stand just singing, shouting
Bharat Maki Jaye, Bharat Maki Jaye, Pakistani Lahore kids with
an Indian flag. And then I remember an entire
group of Indian fans, you know, that very famous chant, Sachin
Sachin, They would do that and then just spontaneously broke
into singing Dil Dil Pakistan, and we all sang along.
And, you know, it's hard to put into words the emotion of that
time, the closeness that two countries that have been through
so much felt. And it's my overriding memory.
I don't remember the score. I remember just a little bit of
the cricket, mostly because Pakistan lost.
But these, this is my overriding memory of just two people kind
of like reacquainting themselves with each other.
And this is those kids, Pakistani kids running with the
flag and those the Indian fan singing is just something that
will always stay with me. Hi folks, my name is Neha, I'm a
cricket writer and Paul Caster and like many of us, my
relationship with this game is a deeply emotional and personal
one. My initiation to cricket boss
during the 2011 Men's ODI World Cup, specifically the semi final
between India and Pakistan. I was young but I remember the
energy around that game so vividly.
The tension, the build up, the sense that this was just more
than a match right. It completely captured my
attention and honestly, I haven't looked back since.
I remember my grandfather talking about the significance
of an India Pakistan match, but this one really hit different.
And from then on, you know, every ICC event just meant one
thing for me. Is India playing Pakistan?
When is it happening? And like, what kind of game is
it going to be? Now, even though India have had,
you know, like, an overwhelmingly favorable record
against Pakistan and ICC events, I've never gone into those games
feeling like, hey, they are predictable.
I feel like this is so much at stake.
Pride, history, narrative, redemption, and just so many
arcs there. The cricket is almost like high
quality because both sides raise their levels.
The competition is just undeniable.
But as I grew older, I also became aware of how complicated
all of it is. Like the geopolitical tensions
between the two countries, something I didn't fully
understand as a kid, started to just feel heavier.
Later. You realize that these are two
nations with a painfully shared history in itself, right?
And cricket then becomes this very symbolic battleground, so
to say. And that's confusing because on
one hand it's just sport on and on the other it just clearly
isn't right. There's also the purest in me
that has always thought, imagine if they played like a
full-fledged test series, right? Imagine if we got to see
sustained 5 day contest between these sides, The tactical depth,
the individual battles, the long form drama.
I really think we've been deprived of that cricket and it
feels like a loss for the game itself.
OK, before I go on a tangent about that, at the same time I
think the whole discourse right around these matches has often
been very disappointing. I feel that nationalism is
something that really gets thrust upon our faces, sometimes
subtly, sometimes times aggressively, And I think it
just turns the contest into something far more hostile than
it sort of needs to be, right? It stops being about, you know,
appreciation of skill and becomes more about just proving
superiority. And honestly, like
administrators, broadcasters just haven't helped the 'cause,
right? There's always been this
tendency to package the rivalry in a very combative, almost
caricatured way, reducing complex histories and even
cultures. Like just punch lines and
tropes, campaigns that frame it as a battle of humiliation
rather than competition. I think it just feels
unnecessary. It cheapens what is otherwise a
deeply compelling sporting rivalry that has so much more to
it, right? I think what I've always loved,
though, are just the moments when no cricket cuts through all
of that noise. When you see players, you know,
share radar, exchanging jerseys, acknowledging each other's
brilliance and when fans talk about, you know, cover drivers
fell fast bowling rather than a political headline, that really
stands out to be more right. Again, for me, I think India
versus Pakistan has never been about animosity.
It's been about intensity. It's also been like theatre,
right? It's been about two incredible
talented cricketing ecosystems just producing players who, you
know, thrive under that kind of pressure.
Imagine a billionaires watching you just do something for a
living. And maybe that's what I hope we
hold on to, right? The empathy, the understanding
that most fans on either side are just people who love the
sport, who grew up with similar memories, similar family watch
parties, watching with friends, experiencing heart breaks and
celebrations. I think we can acknowledge the
tensions, but at the same time we can't pretend that they don't
exist. But we can also choose not to
amplify the worst parts of the discourse.
Because at its best, I think this fixture isn't about
division. It's about how powerful sport
can be in bringing out excellence and probably also
creating those shared memories and lived experiences.
And occasionally in reminding us that we're probably not as
different as we're told we are. Cheers.
That's all from me folks and hope we have a great match.
Not, you know, again, controversy having taken the
center stage. Next up is Rohail Salman.
So I grew up unlike most of the people in Pakistan and a family
that was not a super big cricket fan.
But even in that family in India and Pakistan, match always meant
something, but not in the kind of way that it does now, which
is full of this weird material and jingoism and whatnot.
I mean, that jingoism always existed, but there's always this
sense of sporting rivalry, the sense of respect that both teams
had for for each other, that people on both sides of the
border had for each other. And of course there's a lot of
baggage of history of when times have gone bad and then cricket
has also gone bad as a result of that.
But there's always this camaraderie and this closeness
that you felt with the Indian cricket team that you didn't
with any other cricket team, I mean.
Australia was probably more hated in my household than the
Indian team was and some of my first sporting memories of
Indian Pakistan matches are the 99 World Cup match with India
where we obviously lost and how upset everybody was about us
losing to India even though we did end up getting to the final.
And then what happened, happened.
But that match with India stands out to me as the one match that
everybody in my family, men, women, elders, young people,
everybody was watching. And that's one of my initial
cricket memories as a more conscious adult.
And then another memory that stands out to me as during the
2003 world cover about some disastrously got out during the
group stages, but my family after Pakistan was knocked out
was all on board for supporting India and backing India.
And India reached the final. And I remember I was at a
relative's place and everybody was shocked at how bad the
cheese was going for India. And and I remember funnily now
this is something that I strongly remember is then when
Mongia came to bed at like 5 down or 6 down and somebody in
sitting there in that family gut news, just like, yeah, Mongia
can, Mongia can save India, probably chase this town.
And I knew a little bit more about cricket at that point.
And I was just like, yeah, that's that's not going to
happen. But that's what I mean to say is
that it was always, if not Pakistan, then maybe India in
in, in my family, which was not a huge cricket fan.
And then the first time that I remember when India toured
Pakistan in 2003, I was so excited for that.
Everybody in the country was so excited for that.
I remember how big of big of an occasion it was that India was
touring Pakistan, I think at that point for the first time
since I'd been born. And you could feel the amount of
excitement and love that everybody had for not just the
cricket team visiting, but for the Indians who were visiting
for the matches. And then when that back and
forth with India happened a couple of years after that as
well, I just remember everybody was so excited about the
cricket. And honestly, the cricket was
great as well. And you had cult heroes during
those series. For instance, 2003, I think is
when Balaji became a legend in Pakistan for I have absolutely
no idea now why, but he was loved by the crowds in Pakistan.
But you know, the past few years especially have just taken the
joy out of the game. And there's so many reasons for
that. It's my relationship with the
Pakistan cricket team, but it's also my also watching how
everything has been ruined by the amount of politics and
severe nationalism and I don't even know what to call it
anymore. But I just feel like the joy in
that picture that used to happen just does not exist anymore.
And it's just sad to see that an Indian Pakistan match is no
longer something that I really look forward to.
But I really wish it goes back to how it used to be when I was
younger. Hi, this is Akshay.
For all of those people claiming that India versus Pakistan is no
longer a big rivalry, I'd be willing to wager a lot of money
with them that Surya Kumar Yadav's captaincy could not
survive a loss in this game on Sunday.
India versus Pakistan has for long been the greatest rivalry
in sport for me. I remember every single one of
those games, you know, growing up watching it with my family
and it was always an entire family affair with everyone
involved right from my mom peeking from the kitchen to my
dad, like celebrating every single shot that Sachin hit in
that epic 2003 clash. India versus Pakistan is is the
the greatest legacy definer for all the big players across both
nations. Right from Javed, me and dad's
you know legendary 6 from Shohi Bhaktar's, you know,
back-to-back wickets in India getting Rahul, Dravid and Sachin
out. From Sachin hitting those
massive sixes over third man against Shohi Bhaktar, you know
Virender Sehwag hitting that epic triple 100 and right to
Virat Kohli that knock in Melbourne.
When you will think of these players at the end of their
career, most likely the first game or first moment of their
careers that you remember is going to be an incident from a
very famous India versus Pakistan match.
It's it's the game in. Sport that always transcends
sport. It's it's always a little bit
more no matter what. And it's the game in which, as
as they say, with all epic rivalries.
You can throw form out of the window.
Anything can happen on any given day.
It's always a game that, you know, I personally look forward
to. I know it's going to be a good
game. I hope for both sides sake that
there is a handshake this time and we can, you know, kind of
get back to the typical fashion of how an India Pakistan game
should be played. Because I kind of see it more as
a game where, you know, how all of us have that one relative or
family member who you absolutely love to hate and you never want
to lose against. That's I mean, I feel like
that's kind of how the India versus Pakistan games always
were growing up. And you know, just fantastic,
fabulous clash. Always, always a great game to
look forward to. The next voice note is from Asad
Hassan. Over to you, Asad.
Hello. Everybody thinking back about
golden Pakistan, India, memories, I think it starts back
from Sharjah when I first started to fall in love with the
game. Thinking back to Sharjah Friday,
the lead up into finals for Seema Kamalukar, you know, on
our side, Sachin, on the opposite side, Muhammad
Azarine's wrist work, it's her Amazon commentary.
Just just remember the sheer passion that I felt in that era.
I think the first heartbreak of my life was actually Bangalore
and I never quite understood what this tension was about.
But I remember my father sitting there with a notebook and he had
like 287 runs written on his notebook and he was crossing out
each run as Pakistan scored them.
Of course, we ended up losing and facing the biggest
heartbreak of our lives. But it was never rancorous.
It was never, it was never. It was not about animosity.
It was just a general cricketing rivalry which I absolutely
loved. After that I remember Sahara
cups, you know, we games happening in Canada and waking
up the next morning watching highlights on PTV.
Such wonderful, wonderful, crazy tension filled games with the
Salmi, Malek, Sushi, Mukrams, the Sachins, the Sakland, the
sort of Gangulys of the world. And I just remember it was
always, these were just like bilateral series with not a lot
of context. But because it was India,
Pakistan, it was always very, very, it was full of tension and
stress. And then the, the daddy of all
games, the Chennai Test match in 1999, what a golden, golden
memory. Just the fact that that series
went ahead and but then the the lead in the the leader between
the series was all about trying to cancel the series.
But somehow it went ahead. And everything that happened on
the field was a celebration of why cricket is such an amazing
sport and why cricket in these two countries can always, you
know, mend so many fences. Because you think back to that
game and it was an amazing game in terms of the exhibition of
skill set with Sashaid Afridi, such an unbelievable 100 Wasim
Atram on the last day doing amazing things with the ball.
Anil Kumble, I think Prasad got a lot of wickets as well.
There was some real topsy turvy moments in that game with a
complete drama from start to finish and you could never pick
a winner. As soon as you started to get
comfortable, something would change in that game.
It's easily the best Test match that I've ever seen.
But the thing that made it even greater was the ending to that
game and the when the Pakistan team eventually won, they sensed
that this was a crowd very different from normal crowds.
And they started to take a victory lap and the entire
Chennai Stadium got up on their feet and started applauding the
Pakistani cricket team. To think this was a reaction
from a crowd when two or two or three, two weeks before this, a
pitch had been dug up in Delhi, if I'm not mistaken.
Now you think the the sheer contrast of emotions that ended
up in Chennai and then the voice over from Harsha Bogle as that,
as that victory rap was happening, just amazing, amazing
memories. And then you're thinking
forward. I think back in 2003 World Cup
at the height of tension between India and Pakistan, Ganguly and
Wakar shaking hands. I think they were exchanging
some gifts at the start of the game.
Then 2004 five the seas happened, India toward Pakistan
and there was this outpouring of love from Pakistan, the crowd
chanting Balaji's name. And even though Pakistan lost
the series, both the Test matches in the one days, it just
felt like a festival of cricket. And it almost felt like the
whole goal that sees was to make sure that everybody has a good
time and that we show the best of our hosting spirit to the
Indians. That's what I remember.
That's the India, Pakistan rivalry that I remember.
And then suddenly things have started to go South worse and
worse to an extent that our teams don't even shake each
other's hands on the field. But there is an entire history,
an entire legacy of Pakistani, Indian friendships.
You think back to that series that Pakistan played in India
where we had Shahrukh Khan hosting A cricketing, an event
where he had these players coming on stage and dancing and
like in general, just a very comfortable group of players who
all got along with each other. That's the India Pakistan
rivalry that I remember that even though they were, they
fought fiercely on the field. They were the best of friends
off the field. And you could feel that love
even until recently when Kohli was there, even when Kohli and
Shahab were having memes made of them.
That's the India, Pakistan that I remember and treasure and I
really hope we can go back to that.
Hi, I'm sorry, mid 90s cricket India, Pakistan Majesty
Pakistan. Team.
Those teams are both infatuated. Or when he pay Pakistan team
sari playbook. And then once again, just be
across the line or sense of attractiveness.
They were going through the best period in the 90s to specific
matches to Hamesha, David versus Goliath.
He fight at least to natural inclination time in a team to
support Karneka, not just keep but also I think.
Independence Cup final non Indian style of play 1 down.
That's one memory that's edged very deeply in my mind.
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Dosa Sotraki Champions Trophy final May Pakistan was that
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the strength that we possessed on the field but also our
conduct of the. Field.
Match important this rivalry man fierce John Foo DT mundane
quality difference. So is what you say with
Champions Trophy the final both important or once again,
watching David beat the crap out of Goliath is always, you know,
very heartening. You tend to relate to that
victory or whether he was match maybe who were.
So these were some of the moments which are very close to
my heart. There are many more.
But then again, yeah, these three come to my mind at the
moment. Sasani I grew up in Karachi
until I was 10 and then Saudi Arabia until I was 17.
And so a lot of my, I guess early memories of watching
cricket were there. And I'm guessing like most of
us, it was my Abu, my father, who, you know, really got me
into cricket. I remember being obsessed with
cricket as a kid. My brother took me to a live
game when I was I think 4 years old in Karachi National Stadium
and he told me I was transfixed. You know, I couldn't, I didn't
want to talk, I don't want to do anything.
I just was staring at the pitch and just loved it.
My earliest memories of watching India, Pakistan games, they're
not that many, at least in Pakistan, because I remember the
92 World Cup happened while I was in Pakistan and that's my
first World Cup. The memories are vague.
I think a lot of my memories now are of that World Cup performed
by watching Imran's Tigers, the the tape over and over and over
again. And so I don't have any memories
from 92 of watching the India game and then we moved to Saudi
Arabia. And then I want remember 96
World Cup and I remember that game very well and just being
very disappointed. So you know, nothing really
outside of that. But thinking about this question
of into Pakistan games and memories as a kid, I remember my
father who was born, pre partitioned.
So he was born in Patna and moved to Pakistan I think in 51.
So he would have been around 10 years old by them.
And I think at the time there was, you know, a lot of movement
back and forth. So it wasn't as hard as it is
now, sadly, to move between Pakistan and India.
So and many of his family are still in India.
So I remember growing up as a kid with, you know, a sense of
rivalry with Indian cricket through my father, you know,
through growing up in Pakistan, but never really an animosity.
If anything, there was a lot of mutual respect.
And my father would had a lot of tape recordings of old games,
classic games. They were highlights.
They weren't live, obviously, but it would be.
I remember Imran Khan's spell in Karachi, I think in 82.
It was a magical spell and getting Gavaskar.
And for my father was always Gavaskar.
There was so much mutual respect for him.
But also, you know, he would always talk about how annoying
it was that Gavaskar's defense was still good.
And it was always you had to get Gavaskar in order to get to
India. And, you know, I remember
watching the tapes of Imran's spell and breaking through
Gavaskar. And the other one was, I think
1987, you know, for Pakistani fans, you know, very famous
victory of defeating India in India in the Bangalore Test.
And then I think it was Nassif Ahmed and Iqbal Qasim.
And obviously, you know, at the time I was too young to know
this, but watching the tapes later, my father would always
talk about it. And again, it was never, there
was never really any animosity. And for a lot of people like my
parents, they, you know, they still had family on the other
side of the border. I still have, we have photos.
I was going through my parents photos actually recently.
And there's so many beautiful photos of my parents and I think
the 70s, maybe even the 60s, but 70s for sure.
Travelling around India, my mother's family originally comes
from New Delhi and so travelling around India and my older
siblings, I'm the youngest of five, they all, you know, got to
go and see my father's side of the family that remained in
Bihar and then later moved to Delhi.
But yeah, that are still in India.
But then also just going around, travelling around.
And I was my sister and I were the younger too.
We never got to go. And we always, you know, felt
jealous of their trips and the amazing stories they all had.
And so for me, those are the memories that really stick out
as a kid. Is is nothing to do with
animosity or hatred. It was all of respect, rivalry,
for sure. I'm not going to pretend that,
you know, I always wanted us to beat India.
Then I would get really annoyed if he didn't.
But there was never any anger or hatred towards any of the
players or fans. And then when I moved to Saudi
Arabia, the other thing was that in places like Saudi Arabia or
the US, etcetera, you're surrounded by other day season
In my compound, I'd play cricket with the Kashmiri from the
Indian side. Actually, I think connected to
the the fabric of the love family and then Indian friends
and we'd all play cricket together.
We were the cricket playing kids in the compounds.
So yeah, those are my memories. Hello everyone, I'm the person
behind the Twitter handle Shabadatta 11.
So my memories of India versus Pakistan actually are pretty
painful. All throughout my growing years,
when I was mad about cricket, India never really beat Pakistan
the 1st. And it started with that
infamous Australasia Cup final, the Javed Miyadat, Jaitan Sharma
final. And it's even more painful
because my family, which is a football crazy family, had just
bought our color TV in anticipation of the 1986 Mexico
World Cup. And this was one of the first
live sports events that I was watching on TV at home.
And I remember feeling OK through the day because India
had played well, battered well, and the match was going in our
favor. And then it was only Javed
Miyada who stood tall on one side.
And then that last ball, 6. I don't think I really ever, you
know, managed to exercise that painful memory in spite of
whatever happened after that. And again in those days, the
memories of Sharjah from random losses to things like Aqib
Javed's hat trick to with three LBWS, all of which were shady to
India. Pakistan test series is where I
mean, first four tests were so boring.
I remember one of those days, the first day, Pakistan battered
the entire day, and at the end of the day, they were at 1:30
for four. And even now I kind of doubted
that memory that is it really possible for somebody to back
that slowly? And I went back to that
scorecard and yes, not only were Pakistan 1:30 for four at the
end of day one, there were 379 for seven or something for at
the end of Day 2, they'd scored at the rate of about two runs
per over for two days. And then that same series had
the last Test in Bangalore, which again I remember pretty
vividly because it was Gavaskar standing on one side and Tossif
and Iqbal just running right on the other side.
So that's how it all began. One of the first pleasant
memories was probably the 92 group stage match in the World
Cup. The again Javed me, others
jumping Kiran more fighting with him and then the win.
Let's not forget that win was still overshadowed by the fact
that Pakistan went on to win the tournament 96 again, such a
brilliant win followed up immediately by the in gardens
and final loss to Sri Lanka. So it's really that all
throughout that period, it was never really that India.
Pakistan have has pleasant memories for me.
And of course, let's not forget that it was easy to hate
Pakistan at that time. Not only were they the better
team, their swing bowling, the fast bowling was something that
really didn't understand and that made it seem like black
magic. And also the stories of Shakur,
Rana and Mike getting kind of made, made it easy for us to
hate them. However, I would say that things
started turning nice after the mid 90s.
The wins in Toronto, Saurabh Ganguly is you know, man of the
series performances and by then slowly the international
tournament record getting better really helped.
If someone had told me when I was a child that there will be a
time that India would not only be the better team as compared
to Pakistan, but we would also be winning against them
regularly in tournaments, I would have pretty much laughed
on their face, not believing it at all.
But the irony of the situation is that while that's true, as of
today, I can't even enjoy it. My problems with BCCI and
India's bullying attitude towards cricket makes it
impossible for me to really love what this team does.
It's difficult to separate the two and therefore, while as I
said, I've lost interest in cricket, it's a matter of just
following the results. But beyond that, I really don't
think I have sat and watched live matches to enjoy them and
that is something that hurts me, but so be it.
When I spoke of the core cricketing memories I have about
India and Pakistan, there are two influences that I must talk
about, which helped me outgrow my views of India versus
Pakistan as a purely enemy, enmity driven, you know,
rivalry. The first was my aunt.
Now, on the day of her marriage to my uncle, I'd gone to her
house with the traditional gifts and all of that.
And in her room I remember seeing posters of Imran Khan,
Zahir Abbas, Dilip Bengsarkar and Wasim Akram.
And it had shocked me at that point of time that how do you
have posters of so many Pakistani cricketers in the
house. And I remember asking her about
it and she was like I love cricket.
These are all great cricketers. That was one.
The other is a far recent incident.
About some time back, my mother-in-law actually
introduced us to this TV channel called Z Zindagi which telecast
Pakistani dramas. The politics aside, the channel
being owned by an BJPMP which made money by telecasting
Pakistani dramas. But again, the channel no longer
exists, but the the way we got addicted to those serials is
something that we still watch now.
And more than anything else, those serials tell us that how
in spite of the border, the people, the circumstances,
everything, just the milieu, all of it is so similar.
And these two really influences really helped me re examine my
own biases and therefore look at this, you know, game on a far
more. Hi guys, Silva here, big fan of
the BCCF podcast. Where do I start?
My earliest memory of an India Pakistan match was the me and
dad match in Australasia Cup final.
The one that made him a person a non greater across the country
and probably made Chetan Sharma as well till it and it took him
a year and a World Cup hat trick to kind of redeem that.
A few months after that, or I don't know, it's it, it
probably, it was probably 5-6 months after that.
It was one of the one of the most cherished memories that I
have is going to a Test match in Chair Park.
Probably the earliest Test match that I remember very vividly
called a couple of days that I went was the, you know, the Test
match in Jay Pog. It was a draw.
But you know, I, I got to see Wasim Bol.
I got to see Imran Bol in person.
And I think it was probably the first time I was seeing couple
day Bol in person. It was and and there was this I
remember a huge partnership that Imran and Wasim had.
It was it was just amazing. And Chica scored a century as
well. That was probably my, you know,
most vivid memories that I have of, you know, first, first time
in the ground watching a Test match.
And then you know, after that, I think we were just it was just
all the one days that the two teams used to play in Sharjah
pretty much. And of course interspersed with
the World Cup games, which always had some drama or other
92 with the Neanderth and Kieran Moore and and the 96 Lakar
Jadeja Sohail and Prasad, the drama.
And I was there in person to witness, you know, 2 of amazing
Knox. The Sidon was 194.
And then in the one day final and the and of course Sachin's
Greek tragedy at Chepauk in 1999.
That series itself was amazing. I mean, each test had something.
I mean, you had this and then you had you had the, you know,
Shoy bhaktar doing a Pat Cummins in Matera to in 20 November
192023 to eat in gardens with that twin deliveries to traveled
and such. And so and then, you know,
followed by Kumble's ten first. So, you know, after that, I
guess it was all just the ODI is in, you know, pretty much till
the manic Sachin knock and 2003, followed by probably the
greatest Test series that we played in the 2000s.
I mean, of course, we had the England series and the Australia
2003 as well. But the 2006 Pakistan series was
is, you know, I may have a slight bias to it because of,
you know, brawls pundits of Pakistan as well.
But yeah, you know, that series and the series followed
following that in India, probably the last Test series
that the two teams played. It's a shame considering, you
know, how exciting all of that was.
And yeah, you know, after that it was, it was the, of course,
the, the Misbah scoop distinctly remember where you were, you
know, exactly what you did. And then the, you know, followed
that. After that, I think we, we, the
number of matches kind of dwindled anyway.
And I think we played what the semi final and, and I, I mean
that semi final just kind of special to me because I had AI
had AI was in Abu Dhabi and there was at a client side,
there was this Pakistani colleague and he had, he was a
huge Sachin fan and he had invited me home.
I, I watched just the India innings at his place.
And it was, you know, that was a special occasion as well.
You know, probably the the last, you know, I probably the last
match that I was kind of I had any emotional investment to
India, Pakistan matches and you know, really wanting otherwise.
I don't remember most of the matches after that.
I mean, of course you remember the Champions Trophy final here
and you know, and the other T20 match that you played.
But, you know, you vaguely remember anything after that,
not just because the, you know, quality of the matches having
kind of gone down a bit, but then, you know, also because the
narratives around the matches have been in, you know, anything
but savoury. So yeah, I'm, I'm probably going
to watch. It's kind of a sad day moment,
but yeah, I'm probably going to watch the last hour of the
Sunday game at best because I have something else for
tomorrow. Hopefully doesn't gain, unless
it doesn't, you know, get rained out.
And hopefully the event, if the match happens, the players have
the decency and good sense to shake hands on the pitch when
the game is over. It's a shame this is all I've
kind of started to expect from out of a game, out of a match
that's supposed to be a cricket match.
That everyone, you know, we're all supposed to watch it for the
sport anyway. Here we are Thanks, guys.
Enjoy the match. Yeah.
So it's sad because, you know, obviously the the matches that
used to happen, we're always have always been intense.
They've always been, you know, jingoistic nonsense from both
sides. And, you know, it's always been
the case, given the history and given everything that's
happened. So none of that was shocking or
none of that was surprising. But what has happened, what used
to happen even even in the heights of all those was, you
know, you always had stories like, you know, Ramiz Raja on
commentary talking about how Imran Khan would instruct him.
And Rezwan Zaman, if I remember to to kind of feel that silly
point and forward shot leg in that Sunil Gavaskar's last Test
match at Bangalore where he scored that.
We lost that Test against Pakistan.
But you know, there was this minefield of Bangalore
Chinnaswamy wicket and and Imran apparently told Rameez and
Rizwan to just stand and silly point and forward short legged
with an explicit instruction that look, you guys are not
going to get catches. Just watch the master and learn
how to play on a minefield wicket on the last day, right.
So so you know, from there to you had you had NZ, you know,
Naveed Olasen talking about how NZ was like, you know, chiding
at him for giving a send off to Sachin and he had to go and
apologize to to all the stories that the players used to share
about, you know, going to each other's, you know, being invited
to each other's houses whenever they were touring.
So you know, that is what you would expect from normal human
beings, you know, countries being at war as countries being
at war. But you know, you're normal
human beings. You're just supposed to that is
the normal you are supposed to. And you also, you know, as even
as recently, you know, Virat and the kind of respect that the
Pakistani players, you know, I think he was he, he got the, the
players, you know, kind of surrounded and to get advice and
all that. It was really nice to see and,
you know, given despite everything going around and
which is why whatever has happened is kind of, you know,
really sad to watch. Hi, my name is Raghav
Bichandani. I'm a journalist currently in
between jobs and I started watching cricket around the time
I was maybe 6 years old. There was the 2003 Cricket
World, Men's Cricket World Cup. I had one of these pocket
schedules just detailing the whole tournament, starting off
with the South Africa, West Indies game.
So, so that's where my like journey of, of being a cricket
fan and watching cricket had started.
It took a while for I think for me to actually sit and watch my
First India, Pakistan game. I think it would have been a
bilateral back then. That part I don't fully
remember, but I think it was during that period of 2000 and
four, 2005 where it seemed every six months or every year there
was a big bilateral series either in India or in Pakistan.
It's over 20 years ago. Feels feels like a world away,
feels like it wouldn't be allowed these days.
But the first I'll say real like clear memory in a positive way
of of watching the two teams go at.
It was also the first time I went to watch a cricket match in
person. So this was October 2007 and
when Pakistan toured India for a three match test series with the
first Test being in Delhi at the Ferocia Kotla.
I went with my sister and my dad for I believe it was day three
of the proceedings or or day 2. I I don't fully remember now,
but but in the days had started with Pakistan cleaning up the
Indian tale within the first session and then bat and then
trying to bat out the rest of the day.
I think my enduring memory of it was in the in the at the tail
end of of the day with with Miss Powell hath smash smashing 2
smashing 2 sixes over long off and and long on his his back was
facing towards us. We were sitting in the South
stand. So he was the shots were going
northbound and in that big north North Central stands that though
the ugly looking airport parking lot 1 that everyone makes fun
of. So that so that was my first, I
would say real in person experience of the rivalry
outside of watching random different games on on TV.
But yeah, it was that was a good, that was a good time, I
would say, because it being 2002 thousand and seven, that first
half of the year was when both countries were sort of going
through turmoil with the not doing well at the ODI World Cup
in the West Indies. And but they had just played
each other twice at the T20 World Cup in South Africa.
And this bilateral series in India came basically a month, a
month after that tournament ended.
So yeah, it was it was a good time.
It was a it was a fun time. And it's it's obviously sad that
these, that these, these bilateral sort of experiences
don't really happen anymore. 201213 would have been the last
time that, that, that at least in the men's game, that there
would have been a chance of that.
But from what I remember, those were just white ball games.
I remember if there was a game in Delhi and if we didn't go, I
didn't go. But but yeah, to answer your
question, my my main, main memory of the rivalry was that
2007. Test 2007 Test match in October.
Other than that, I'd give a shout out to the inaugural
season of the IPL with the hype that was around the auction and
the Pakistani players that were part of it as well.
I'm a Delhi fan obviously. So for us it was Mohammad Asif
and Shoaib Malik. Need So Shoaib Malik wasn't that
brilliant for us, but But yeah, it was.
It was fun, at least for a little while, seeing Asif's
express space in a black and red jersey.
And yeah, it's sad that it's sad that that doesn't happen anymore
either. But but yeah, that was fun.
Next up, Prateek Jha. Hi, I hope.
I'm not too late I my memory of the India Pakistan rivalry.
My first memory was during the 91 World Cup which Pakistan won
and I was just trying to understand the game.
At that time. I was just learning it and I
knew that India is a team which does not always win and it's the
World Cup. But then the meander jumping
Jack happened, which was I think the biting memory and I was like
what is happening? This seems to be a normal sport.
And suddenly you know this. So the drama was, you know,
outstanding the really the outstanding memory of the match,
then the cricket. But then India won, which was
again, surprising. And which kind of made you think
about cricket being a game where India, which was a bad team, won
the eventual, you know, defeated the eventual champions.
So. Yeah, that's my memory of the
game. And I guess now the drama has
really, you know, become bigger than the actual cricket.
So I'm not looking forward to the game.
Well, I'm looking forward to see what effect this new, you know,
culture has made on players and how they handle it.
Are they going to get into wobble spats and fight each
other on the field? So yeah, I'm looking forward to
some contact sports, I guess. That's a second hundred in
successive. Dramatic.
Style. The whole of Bengal are on their
feet. Not that important.
He's gone the next. Ball, The dream has diminished
for Carlos Bratwick.