Engineer urges Imran to restore Indo-Pak Test ties
Former India wicketkeeperbatsman Farokh Engineer has urged Pakistan’s captainturned-Prime Minister Imran Khan to use his political clout and restore bilateral Test cricket between the arch-rivals. Since the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, bilateral cricket ties between India and Pakistan have been frozen amid political tensions and they only play each other in multi-nation events such as the World Cup.
The last time the neighbours met in a five-day international was in Bangalore in 2007. “Imran Khan, he is the prime minister now. Hopefully India and Pakistan will start a dialogue,” Engineer, a flamboyant player of the 1960s and 70s said during the inaugural Ranji Memorial Public Conversation in London this week.
“They should be playing Test cricket against each other because it will do Pakistan cricket, their economy, a world of good. But you hear about border skirmishes and this and that. They’ve got to have dialogue.”
Khan, one of the outstanding all-rounders of his generation, became Prime Minister earlier this year and Engineer believes he now has the authority to break the impasse. Engineer said, “As a cricketer, I would love India to play Pakistan or vice versa. But it is a question of convincing the political leaders.”
“Basically we are the same people. Both countries have extremely talented cricketers and I, for one, would love to see that happen but unfortunately the brakes are on,” Engineer lamented.
Most major cricket nations have refused to tour Pakistan on security grounds since the 2009 terrorist attack on the Sri Lankan team bus near the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore, forcing the country to play its ‘home’ matches in the UAE. Former Pakistan batsman Mushtaq Mohammad, who was on the same panel, said, “We’d love India to come to Pakistan, that would be a real boost. We play our ‘home’ series away from home, which is a very sad episode.” Virat Kohli sauntering towards Sachin Tendulkar’s records that once looked staggering and seemingly unsurpassable has amazed the icon, who Thursday called the Indian captain one of the greatest but said he “never believed” in comparisons. Recently Kohli surpassed Tendulkar to become the fastest player to score 10,000 ODI runs.
He is also inching towards Tendulkar’s record for highest number of ODI hundreds (49), having notched his 38th ton in Pune in the third game against West Indies. “Coming to Virat’s development as a player, I think he has developed immensely. And I always saw that spark in him. I always felt that he is going to be one of the leading players in the world, not just of this generation, but one of the leading players of all time,” Tendulkar told reporters here.
“And then it is again about opinions. But if one has to go into comparisons, then I don’t want to get into that. There were different bowlers who played in 60s, 70s, 80s, and possibly in my time and what they are playing today. So I wouldn’t want to get into that,” he said.
The legendary player was speaking after the first India camp of the Tendulkar Middelsex Global Academy began at the DY Patil Stadium. His childhood friend and former India batsman Vinod Kambli also mentored the kids. Tendulkar categorically stressed that he did not believe in comparisons. “I think first of all, like how Virat has said and I have been saying for 24 years that I have played. I have never believed in comparison. Each generation if you take from the time cricket was played from day one to now, the change has been constant.
“Then each generation played differently, there were different rules, there were different restrictions, there were different surfaces, there were different balls also at times. So lot of things, boundary lines if you see earlier, I have played where the ball had to hit the concrete in Australia, things have changed over the years. I personally don’t feel one should be comparing different generations,” he said.
“But within that generation also I personally believe there should not be any comparison, because every individual whatever he or she does needs to be respected and judge by itself, it doesn’t have to be always judged by comparing someone and I don’t believe in that (comparisons),” Tendulkar noted.
Tendulkar praised teenage prodigy Prithvi Shaw, terming the right-handed batsman a fast-leaner. Shaw made a dream debut to his Test career by slamming a hundred in the first Test against West Indies in Rajkot.