It was a warm April evening in the deserts of the UAE that raised the rivalry between Pakistan and India to its zenith. Four runs required on the last ball, Javed Miandad’s historic six and Pakistan’s memorable one-wicket win – that was the epic tale of Pakistan’s first ever victory in a one-day tournament.
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The unfortunate Chetan Sharma tried to bowl a Yorker to Javed Miandad, but it turned into a full-toss. Miandad swung his bat; umpire’s both hands went up in the air (Photo: Getty Images)[/caption]The fans who still remember the boom of the six may never ever forget it. Such interesting matches can be counted on the fingers of one hand, but the fame won by this match seems incomparable. After all, the match was between the two greatest opponents of the cricket world. Given the context of the match, one can visualize the scene at the stadium of Sharjah.
Chasing a 246-run target, Miandad was the only Pakistani batsman who put up resistance against Indian bowlers and, eventually, helped the team win the match, snatching it from the opponents’ clutches.
There were prizes galore for Miandad after that six. From Mercedes car to diamond bracelet costing $80,000, Miandad was warmly welcomed by Arab’s sheikhs and prominent Pakistani figures and shot to eternal fame after the song “Ek chhakkay kay Javed ko 100 lakh milengay” (Javed will get millions for one six).
The six imbued Pakistan with so much confident that they dominated India for many years to come. And India was so badly affected that they had to struggle a lot for a win against Pakistan. The attitude of Pakistan team as a whole also changed drastically and it may be a continuation of that historic win that Pakistan claimed 1992 World Cup; and that too was because of Miandad’s riveting performance.
Miandad reminisces about the moment in these words: “Poor Chetan Sharma. They say he did try for a yorker, but the ball slipped out of his hand. Or perhaps it was the fact that I was standing well forward of the batting crease that threw him off his length. Whatever the mysterious origins of that last delivery, it ended up being the perfect ball for me and for Pakistan - a full-toss at the right height, slightly towards leg, all I had to do was take a swing and it sailed out of the ground.
“After that, it was pandemonium. We had won, Pakistan had won, Tauseef had won, I had won. What a match! It is one of the best memories of my life.”
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