Javed Miandad was the colossus of Pakistan cricket and he was the ultimate pantomime villain for India in the period of the 80s and the 90s.
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In sporting contests, there is one individual who shapes the destiny of a team. When it came to India and Pakistan, the rivalry got a tense edge with the presence of one individual. He was always earmarked for greatness. But, in 1986, one particular moment changed the entire equation for Pakistan in their arch-rivalry against India. Prior to that final in Sharjah in 1986, Pakistan cricket had been on the backfoot in ODIs against India. Out of 15 games, India had won eight while Pakistan had won seven. On April 18, 1986, the destiny of Pakistan would be changed by a certain player called Javed Miandad.
In the final of the Australiasia Cup, Pakistan and India locked horns. India batted first and made 245/7 with Kris Srikkanth, Sunil Gavaskar and Dilip Vengsarkar hitting fifties. Pakistan stumbled at regular intervals and no batsmen got going, with the exception of Miandad. He was the glue to Pakistan’s fortunes and until he was there, the team had hope.
Miandad shared a partnership of 71 with Abdul Qadir. But once that stand was broken, Pakistan were struggling for momentum. Yet, Miandad refused to give up.
Miandad had gotten the game very close. In the final over, Chetan Sharma was bowling. He had taken three wickets and India were on the cusp of a win. Pakistan needed four runs off the final ball with just one wicket remaining. Miandad had crossed a century but it looked it would be in vain.
#OnThisDay in 1957. Javed Miandad was born in Karachi. He made 163 in his 1st Test innings & is one of only 2 men to have a Test average that never dropped under 50. He scored 206 in his 4th Test innings & made 6 double-hundreds. He also hit the most famous 6 in history #Cricket pic.twitter.com/JKDkGKDZkl
— Saj Sadiq (@Saj_PakPassion) June 12, 2021
In a later interview, Chetan Sharma had admitted that he changed his plan of bowling a slow ball at the last moment and instead decided for the yorker. Chetan Sharma dished out a full toss. Miandad, hunched on the backfoot, launched the ball into the stands for a last-ball six. It was that moment that saw Pakistan turn the tables on India in the rivalry. It gave India vs Pakistan a riveting folklore that would define each and every contest.
From that point on, Pakistan held the mental edge against India in ODIs. Pakistan would win eight out of the next 10 ODIs against India. They would repeat it at the start of the 90s and yet again when the new millennium dawned. Pakistan have a superior ODI record against India and it was all thanks to Javed Miandad.
Pakistan cricket has had several individuals who have put the country on the cricketing map throughout its history. At the beginning, it was Fazal Mahmood with the ball. Towards the late 60s and the early 80s, it was the genius of Zaheer Abbas who glorified Pakistan’s batting. From Zaheer Abbas, the period of the 80s till the mid-90s saw superstars like Imran Khan, Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis, Saleem Malik, Ijaz Ahmed, Inzamam-ul-Haq, Saeed Anwar and Aamer Sohail. But, Javed Miandad held his own and became the benchmark for success.
Miandad is the only batsman after Herbert Sutcliffe to have a Test average that never dropped below 50. His Test records are a matter of envy. He was the first Asian to hit six double tons in Tests. He never shied away from a showdown with fierce competitors. Who else can boast of waving a bat at Dennis Lillee after the bowler kicked up?
During the period of the 80s, there were two teams who battled for Test supremacy. West Indies and Pakistan played out three drawn series. Miandad averaged 29 against the West Indies. But, hidden in that stat is the glory of the 1987/88 series in the Caribbean.
In the first Test in Guyana, Miandad took a lot of body blows and withstood a ferocious assault from the Windies pacers. There is a story of Miandad asking the West Indies players to hit him on the head. The Pakistani ace managed to overcome them as he hit 114. Imran Khan’s 11-wicket haul gave Pakistan a famous win. They held out for a draw in Port of Spain before the final Test in Barbados.
In a match marred by two bad umpiring decision and captaincy misjudgments, West Indies kept their proud home record intact as they won the final Test by two wickets. Miandad and Pakistan were halted from their mission of being supreme in the West Indies, but only by the skin of their opponent’s teeth.
Miandad’s tally of 8832 runs was not overhauled for close to 20 years. Only one person has managed to do that in the entire history of Pakistan cricket. Younis Khan not only has overhauled Miandad’s record, but he is the only Pakistan batsman to 10,000 runs.
In whatever way you looked at it, Miandad always reserved his best for the old enemy. His Test average of 67 is only made better by his record against New Zealand. In 35 ODIs, Miandad averaged over 50 only against India, Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe. He hit three centuries in ODIs only against India.
Apart from the 1986 game, Miandad also managed to rile the Indian team in the 1992 World Cup match in Sydney. Kiran More, the Indian keeper, was getting under the skin of the Pakistani batsmen, in particular Miandad. The Pakistani batsman mocked More’s appeal and jumped like a kangaroo. This image became another addition in the India vs Pakistan rivalry.
In the 1996 World Cup, during his final years, India held the upper hand against Pakistan in the quarterfinal in Bangalore. But, no Indian fan predicted an outright win. Because, Miandad, even in his final playing days was still potent. At the age of 64, the feats and records of Javed Miandad are indeed supreme. Pakistan cricket and the world were enriched in his 21-year laying career.
