Although any match in cricket is played between the teams of two countries and between 11–11 players of both teams, but there have been some matches in cricket history that are remembered more for the tremendous battle between their players than the match between the two countries. While Pakistan has been famous for its fast bowlers, India has had more than one great batsman.
In the year 2003, the World Cup was being held in South Africa, and in the 36th match of this World Cup, the teams of arch-rivals India and Pakistan were face-to-face. While the Indian team had Sachin Tendulkar, the god of cricket,. So the Pakistan’s team was full of fast bowlers, including great fast bowlers like Shoaib Akhtar, Wasim Akram, and Waqar Younis. The emotions of cricket lovers of both countries were rising and people were connected to whatever means were there, from the field to radio, TV, etc. The match was between Indian batsmen and Pakistani fast bowlers.
Pakistan’s captain, Waqar Younis won the toss and decided to bat first. Saeed Anwar and Taufiq Umar came to the field as openers from Pakistan. Pakistan made a steady start and shared a 50-run partnership in about 10 overs for the first wicket. On a total of 58 runs, Taufiq Umar was clean-bowled by Zaheer Khan, giving the Indian team its first breakthrough. Taufiq Umar scored 22 runs. After this, Saeed Anwar stayed at one end and, along with other Pakistan batsmen, making small partnerships, completed his century and reached the team’s score of 195 runs that he was bowled by Ashish Nehra. Anwar played a brilliant century of 101 runs. Eventually, Pakistan somehow managed to score 273 runs, losing 7 wickets in 50 overs.
Given the army of Pakistan’s fast bowlers on Centurion Ground, this target of 274 runs was not looking easy for the Indian team. This was the period when if any team scored 270/280 runs, then the match went 80% in their favour, on top of which Pakistan also had the scary and stormy bowler Shoaib Akhtar of that era.
Now the pressure was on India’s batsmen. With bowlers like Wasim Akram, Shoaib Akhtar, and Waqar Younis, the Pakistan team looked heavy. Both Indian openers, Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag, were under immense pressure to give the Indian team the best start. On one side was the pressure of giving a fast start, and on the other side was the army of deadly fast bowlers from Pakistan.
It is said that big players perform well in big matches. Sachin Tendulkar did something similar in this match. Chasing the target of 274 runs, Indian team opener batsman Sachin Tendulkar took on the responsibility of demolishing Pakistan’s biggest weapon, Shoaib Akhtar, in his hands.
The Indian team had completed their 50 runs in about 5 overs. In the sixth over, Virender Sehwag fell victim to Waqar Younis after scoring 21 runs off 14 balls. On the next ball of the same over, Waqar Younis stunned the Indian fans by lbw Indian captain Sourav Ganguly for zero runs. The score was 53/2, and it seemed that Pakistan had returned to the match. In the meantime, when Razzaq dropped Sachin’s catch on a personal score of 32 runs, Sachin did not give any other chance to the Pakistan bowlers, and whether it was Akram or Shoaib Akhtar, everyone was fiercely beaten.
In the meantime, Sachin Tendulkar got the best support from Mohammad Kaif, and the next wicket added 102 runs for the third wicket in 16 overs. When India’s score was 155 runs at the loss of 2 wickets in about 22 overs and it seemed that the Indian team would win the match easily, Mohammad Kaif scored 35 runs and was lbw to Shahid Afridi’s ball. Even after Kaif’s dismissal, Sachin Tendulkar continued the attack, and he targeted Shoaib Akhtar the most. While beating Shoaib Akhtar mercilessly, Sachin Tendulkar had scored 98 runs off 75 balls and was just 2 runs away from the century when Shoaib Akhtar denied Sachin Tendulkar a century by dismissing him with a dangerous ball. Akhtar’s ball broke the hearts of crores of Indians.
In the end, Rahul Dravid scored 44 runs and Yuvraj Singh scored an unbeaten half-century (50 runs) to give India a 6-wicket win. Even today, we remember that match for Sachin Tendulkar’s explosive innings and Shoaib Akhtar’s beating. Sachin Tendulkar’s match-winning innings of 98 runs are still remembered by everyone. Sachin Tendulkar beat Shoaib Akhtar in this match in such a way that Virat Kohli is following that tradition today. It may have been more than twenty years since this war between the two, but on remembering, it seems as if it was just yesterday.
