Javed Miandad - the Player who Rose from the Streets of Karachi

Written by: Muhammad Suhayb
Posted on: November 27, 2020 | | 中文

Javed Miandad at the Austral-Asia Tournament in 1986

Cricket was once the gentleman’s game played only by the elite, and it took years for it to become popular. From the lush grounds in England to the streets of post-colonial South Asia, the game evolved and became more competitive. What’s special about street cricket is that there are very few rules, and in the rough and tumble of the game, any means can be used to dismiss a batsman.

Since the Partition of the Subcontinent, street Cricket has been played in every town and city of Pakistan, especially in Karachi. Club officials would often keep an eye on the fresh talent of cricketers emerging from the streets, and select them for clubs on the basis of their talent. In turn, these clubs would provide entrance into the world of cricket, grooming street cricketers into gentlemen, and some of them would retire as legends. Whenever the ‘new kid on the block’ entered the international arena, his game and attitude evolved according to the club environment.

Javed Miandad grew during his career as the former captain and the run-making machine of Pakistan’s cricket team. This legendary batsman with 16,000 plus international runs, and over 30 centuries, often showed his unpolished street attitude in international matches. Whether it was raising the bat to hit “Dennis the Menace” Lillie, despite being the captain of his team, or leap-frogging to Kiran More. Javed Miandad never failed to entertain the audience. However, there are some lesser-known yet hilarious instances, which present the ‘little devil’ in a different light.

Javed Miandad made his test debut in October 1976 against the visiting New Zealanders. His century on his debut and a double hundred in just his 3rd Test, turned him into an overnight sensation. He was set to accompany the national team to Australia, which was captained by Mushtaq Muhammad. At that time, Pakistan had not won a test match in Australia. By the mid-70s, Australia was one of the top teams and its players relied heavily on ‘sledging’: the act of teasing the opposing batsman while close-in fielders were allowed to taunt them as well.

1-Bird Sledging (Australia)

Pakistan managed to draw the first test, but lost the second one badly by 348 runs. Things were getting out of hand as Pakistani players were getting tired of being sledged. With the final test near, Muhammad decided to counter the Aussies by sledging right back. With seniors being regulars at the English county scene, the men-in-green agreed to dishing out the same treatment in a language understandable to the Aussies. 19-year-old Miandad wanted to join in, but his English was limited to a couple of cricketing words. When Mushtaq Muhammad asked him how would he participate, he replied, ‘I would chirp like a bird from the slips in order to upset the batsman’. Miraculously, the trick worked as Pakistan won the final Test of the series.

2-Street running (India)

The Indian team toured Pakistan for a test series after 23 years in 1978. Pakistan was one-up in the series, and in the 3rd test match, another victory was in sight. Pakistan needed over 160 runs to win in just 20-odd overs, while the Indian captain Bishen Singh Bedi, spread the field out to stop the boundaries. Javed Miandad and Asif Iqbal made life miserable for them as they added 90 odd runs for the second wicket in 8 overs. On a couple of occasions, Asif and Javed made four runs owing to fielding lapses. They even took cheeky singles, causing panic to the fielders. Pakistan won by eight wickets in that match, and Miandad hit the winning runs. This type of attitude is common in street matches, for when a ball falls in a gutter, the batsmen go on taking runs until the ball is recovered.

3- Out of the crease, (Australia)

Everyone remembers Pakistan’s 100th Test match, when Sarfaraz Nawaz wreaked havoc and took 9 wickets in the second innings of the Melbourne Test. But what people forget from that event was Miandad’s dismissal of Rodney Hogg. Australia, in reply to Pakistan’s 196, were at 167/7 and Hogg was batting at 9. So far wicket-less in the match, Sarfaraz was bowling while Javed Miandad was fielding at the short leg. Hogg played the ball and went out of his crease to do some ‘gardening’ of the pitch. That was enough for Javed, as he crossed the pitch, picked the ball which still had not stopped, and removed the bails. An appeal was made and Hogg was given out. But later Mushtaq withdrew the appeal, and called him back. The umpire refused to allow Hogg to bat, and Hogg dismantled the stumps with his bat on his way back to the pavilion.

4- Rumble with the opposing team’s captain (England)

A batsman who is close to setting up a record is wrongfully adjudged out by a neutral umpire on his home ground. Walking back, he is provoked by the opposing captain and a fight ensues. This is a routine sight during street matches, but something like this happened with Miandad during the World Cup in October 1987. Starting in March, Javed was scoring heavily in limited overs. Be it India, Sharjah or England, he was unstoppable everywhere. When he came out to bat in Rawalpindi with 9 consecutive scores of over fifty runs, he had his eye on the tenth score. His dreams were shattered when he was adjudged leg before off Phillip DeFreitas. Dismissed for 23, Javed was furious at the Australian umpire Tony Crafter, when English captain Mike Gatting aggravated him. The opposing captain grabbed Miandad and apparently swore at him. Miandad directed all his anger towards Gatting, which involved a huge pat on his cheek, usually done to silence an opponent in street cricket.

5- The last match as captain, (New Zealand)

In his last test match as captain, New Zealand required 127 runs to win, but Miandad’s overnight challenge to dismiss them in under 100 runs was still possible. At Hamilton, New Zealand were comfortably placed at 61/3, when batsman Andrew Jones attempted a run. He tapped a delivery towards Javed standing at square leg. The non-striker Adam Parore scampered into his crease as he saw Miandad picking the ball and moving his body towards the non-striker’s end. Andrew Jones was a couple of steps out of his own crease and it never occurred to him that Javed could go for his dismissal. He was wrong, as Miandad hurled the ball towards the striker’s end, without moving his body. The throw missed the wickets by a whisker, otherwise Jones would be out. The alertness of Javed must have sent shivers in the home team’s camp as they were all out for 93; Jones leaving when the score was 65 and Parore, two runs later. Pakistan won the match owing to the killer instinct of its skipper.

Even in the last limited overs match of his international career, the famous quarter final of the 1996 World Cup at Bangalore, there was hope that he might score 20 off one over. But because he was almost 39 years old, Miandad failed to repeat what he did 10 years earlier at Sharjah. He may have failed in Bangalore, but he was the coach of the team which won the Madras Test by 12 runs three years later. Despite having in turn tortured and challenged the opposition for over 22 years, Miandad never faltered in his technique. Had the game remained within elite circles, the sport would not have seen the rise of Javed Miandad and the incorporation of street cricket into the mainstream.