Meet the Pakistani who organises Indian Independence Day Cup cricket
dubai — At a time when diplomatic relations between India and Pakistan have hit an all-time low, a Pakistani national is gearing up to organise a cricket tournament in Dubai to celebrate India’s 70th Independence Day.
Senior umpire Tariq Butt’s heart beats for cricket. Those who know him will vouch for his contributions in UAE cricket.
And it was here in Dubai that he first organised the Indian Independence Cup in 1986.
“I came to Dubai in 1977. I got to know then that Mr (Abdul Rahman) Bukhatir was organising cricket tournaments in Sharjah. I started playing cricket for some local clubs and that’s when I made many Indian friends like Shyam Bhatia and Mohamed Lokhandwala,” Butt told Khaleej Times during an interview.
“So with the help of many friends, I first organised the Indian Independence Cup under the auspices of Dubai Cricket Council in 1986. The tournament was sponsored by IP Khaitan. Since then people like Dipak Arora and Freddy Sidwa have done a lot for this tournament.
“So it’s been 31 years now for this seven-a-side tournament. My Indian friends are still supporting this event.”
Butt was also associated with the Pakistan Independence Cup cricket tournament in Dubai.
“Yes, I was organising the Pakistan Independence Day Cup in Dubai as well. Unfortunately we haven’t got sponsors in the last two years. As you know, it’s not possible to stage events without sponsors. But we have never faced a sponsorship problem for the Indian Independence Cup,” he added.
India-Pakistan cricket
During the glory days of Sharjah cricket in the 1980s and 1990s, Butt was the dressing room in charge at Sharjah Cricket Stadium.
It was at this iconic venue that the India-Pakistan cricket rivalry reached a mythical status especially after that match-winning lastball six by Javed Miandad off Chetan Sharma.
Remarkably, it’s his friendship with the Indian players that the Lahore-born Butt cherishes.
“I have very good friendship with Indian players. Bishan Singh Bedi, Kapil Dev, and Yuvraj Singh’s father Yograj are my good friends,” Butt said. “Then there is Mr (Sunil) Gavaskar. And you know the last time I went to India to watch an India-Pakistan Test match, Sachin (Tendulkar) invited me to have breakfast with him in his room!” Now India’s refusal to play international cricket in the UAE hurts Butt.
“We miss the Indian team in the UAE. My first official ICC tournament in Sharjah was in 1986. Those days, you know, in every India-Pakistan match, 20,000 people would keep standing outside the stadium, hoping to get in. Those were the golden days,” Butt said.
“Now I would like to request BCCI to send the Indian team again to play cricket with Pakistan in the UAE. They should come here to play for the Indian and Pakistani people in the UAE.”