1992-93 SAARC Quadrangular
Encyclopedia
The 1992–93 SAARC Quadrangular cricket Tournament started in Dhaka
, Bangladesh
in December 1992 amidst great enthusiasm and excitement. 4 teams, the 'A' teams from neighbouring India
, Pakistan
and Sri Lanka
, and the full national team of the host country participated in the event. Unfortunately due to the volatile political situation arising in the sub-continent, the tournament had to be abandoned at the League stage. Thus, there was no winners of the tournament.
India came to the tournament with the strongest team, and they were the favourites to lift the trophy. The didn't get the chance to do that, but some of the players were rewarded for their brilliant performances. Both Vinod Kambli
and off-spinner Rajesh Chauhan
made their test debut against England at Eden Garden, Calcutta, in Jan 1993. Navjot Singh Sidhu
was recalled to open the batting, and he remained a regular member of the Indian national team till the end of the decade. Maninder Singh
, the captain of the 'A' team, was recalled briefly, for the one-off test Match against Zimbabwe in March 1993. Ajay Sharma
, the highest wickettaker of the tournament, earned himself a recall to the Indian ODI team. In contrast, the future Indian captain Sourav Ganguly
played in all the games, but never got the chance to bat. His only over in the tournament, against the Paks, went for 13 runs.
Pakistan didn't sent their strongest available team. Instead, they gave opportunity to some youngsters. The openers, Basit Ali
and Shaheed Anwar, impressed with their aggressive batting. Their seamers did well, but they didn't have the quality spinner required for slow turning pitches. The Lankan team was very weak, and they were badly beaten in all the games. Still, The pacer Graham Labroy, bowled with plenty of hearts.
For the hosts, their best moment came on the opening day, with a crushing defeat of the Lankans. The medium pacers Saiful Islam
, Jahangir Alam Talukdar
Dulu & Gholam Nousher
Prince bowled the opposition out for a mere 85. The Abedin brothers, Nobel
& Nannu
, then did the rest. The seamers bowled well again against Pakistan, putting them under pressure initially, but at the end the hosts didn't have enough runs on the board.
won the trophy, beating Bangladesh in the final. Pakistan won the 3rd event, (Feb. 1997) beating arch rivals India in a rain affected final. Bangladesh lost all their 3 games in 1997, but it was by no means a disgraceful performance, as the oppositions in this tournament were far superior to anything before. In fact, this tournament provided a very useful preparation for the team which went to win the ICC Trophy
in April. Soon, Bangladesh became a full member the ICC, & with Bangladesh regularly hosting full ODI matches the need for the SAARC tournament became obsolete. Nevertheless, there is still considerable amount of 'A' grade cricket played among the South Asian nations.
Dhaka
Dhaka is the capital of Bangladesh and the principal city of Dhaka Division. Dhaka is a megacity and one of the major cities of South Asia. Located on the banks of the Buriganga River, Dhaka, along with its metropolitan area, had a population of over 15 million in 2010, making it the largest city...
, Bangladesh
Bangladesh
Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
in December 1992 amidst great enthusiasm and excitement. 4 teams, the 'A' teams from neighbouring India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
and Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
, and the full national team of the host country participated in the event. Unfortunately due to the volatile political situation arising in the sub-continent, the tournament had to be abandoned at the League stage. Thus, there was no winners of the tournament.
A Novel Idea
Throughout the 80's a number of international teams from the test playing nations toured Bangladesh. Unfortunately most of these teams were made up retired professionals or amateurs. With Bangladesh cricket entering its professional days such tours were no longer very helpful. The local cricket authority, after some thought, decided to introduce the concept of SAARC cricket. It provided the chance for the Bangladeshi cricketers to fight against the up and coming cricketing talents of the sub-continent. Though, this initial attempt ended abruptly, eventually this concept became a great success.Scores in Brief
| Date | Match | Result | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec. 3 | Bangladesh v Sri Lanka | Sri Lanka 85 (Saiful Islam Saiful Islam Mohammad Saiful Islam Khan is a former Bangladeshi cricketer who played in 7 ODIs from 1990 to 1997.Originally from Mymensingh, Saiful played for the Bangladesh U-19 side in 1989.... 3/23, Jahangir Alam Talukdar Jahangir Alam Talukdar Mohammad Jahangir Alam Talukdar is a former Bangladeshi cricketer who played in 2 ODIs in 1990.The left arm fast bowler first played for the Bangladesh side in the 3 day match against Pakistan in January 1986. But it was only from the 1989–90 season that he started to appear regularly in... 3/19) |
Bangladesh 87/3 (Nurul Abedin Nurul Abedin Nurul Abedin is a former Bangladeshi cricketer born September 7, 1964 in Chittagong who played in 4 ODIs from 1986 to 1990.Nurul Abedin, more commonly known as Nobel, was the elder brother of Minhajul Abedin . Originally from Chittagong, the brothers were prominent figures in Dhaka cricket, in the... 38*, Minhajul Abedin Minhajul Abedin Minhajul Abedin is a former Bangladeshi cricketer who played in 27 ODIs from 1986 to 1999. He captained Bangladesh twice during the Asia Cup of 1990–91. In local cricket arena he is more commonly known by his nickname, "Nannu".-Early days:Nannu caught the attention of the cricket selectors in the... 32, Labroy 3/35) |
Bangladesh wins by 7 wickets | |
| 4 Dec. | India V Pakistan | Pakistan 195( Basit Ali Basit Ali Basit Ali is a former Pakistani cricketer who played in 19 Tests and 50 ODIs from 1993 to 1996. He was recognized by many to have a similar batting style as Javed Miandad. A right-hander, he has the relatively uncommon statistic of having a higher ODI than Test batting average... 42, Aamer Hanif Aamer Hanif Aamer Hanif is a former Pakistani cricketer who played five ODIs between 1993 to 1995.- References :... 37, Rajesh Chauhan Rajesh Chauhan Rajesh Kumar Chauhan is a former Indian cricketer who played in 21 Tests and 35 ODIs from 1993 to 1998. He was part of the Indian spin trio of Kumble-Raju-Chauhan, in the 1990s.... 3/25, Ajay Sharma Ajay Sharma Ajay Kumar Sharma is a retired Indian cricketer.Sharma was a prolific run-maker in first-class cricket, mainly for Delhi, scoring over 10,000 runs at the high average of 67.46... 3/28) |
India 199/1 (Navjot Singh Sidhu Navjot Singh Sidhu Navjot Singh Sidhu is former Indian cricket star . After retirement from cricket Navjot Singh Sidhu took up television commentary, and politics. He was later forced to resign from his political position because he was convicted of homicide.-Biography:... 95*, Vinod Kambli Vinod Kambli Vinod Ganpat Kambli is a former Indian cricketer, who played for India as a middle order batsman, as well as for Mumbai and Boland, South Africa.He is childhood friend of ace cricketer Sachin Tendulkar... 46*) |
India wins by 9 wickets | |
| 5 Dec. | Bangladesh V Pakistan | Bangladesh 159 (Akram Khan Akram Khan (cricketer) Mohammad Akram Hussain Khan , known as Akram Khan, is a former Bangladeshi cricketer who played in 8 Tests and 44 ODIs from 1988 to 2003. He captained Bangladesh in 15 of his ODIs. A hard hitting middle order batsman, Akram played first class cricket for Chittagong Division.Akram Khan was part of... 38, Tanvir Mehedi 5/23) |
Pakistan 160/5 (Shaeed Anwar 65, Shaeed Javed 55) | Pakistan wins by 5 wickets | |
| 6 Dec. | India V Sri Lanka | India216/3 (S. Bhave 81, Vinod Kambli Vinod Kambli Vinod Ganpat Kambli is a former Indian cricketer, who played for India as a middle order batsman, as well as for Mumbai and Boland, South Africa.He is childhood friend of ace cricketer Sachin Tendulkar... 62*) |
Sri Lanka 149 (Duminda Perrera 53, Ajay Sharma Ajay Sharma Ajay Kumar Sharma is a retired Indian cricketer.Sharma was a prolific run-maker in first-class cricket, mainly for Delhi, scoring over 10,000 runs at the high average of 67.46... 5/30) |
India wins by 68 runs | |
| 9 Dec. | Pakistan V Sri Lanka | Sri Lanka 126 ( Aamer Hanif Aamer Hanif Aamer Hanif is a former Pakistani cricketer who played five ODIs between 1993 to 1995.- References :... 4/36) |
Pakistan 126/1 (Basit Ali Basit Ali Basit Ali is a former Pakistani cricketer who played in 19 Tests and 50 ODIs from 1993 to 1996. He was recognized by many to have a similar batting style as Javed Miandad. A right-hander, he has the relatively uncommon statistic of having a higher ODI than Test batting average... 69*) |
Pakistan wins by 9 wickets | |
| 10 Dec | India vs Bangladesh | India 30/0 (8 overs) | Bangladesh (Did not bat) | The match & the Tournament abandoned |
India came to the tournament with the strongest team, and they were the favourites to lift the trophy. The didn't get the chance to do that, but some of the players were rewarded for their brilliant performances. Both Vinod Kambli
Vinod Kambli
Vinod Ganpat Kambli is a former Indian cricketer, who played for India as a middle order batsman, as well as for Mumbai and Boland, South Africa.He is childhood friend of ace cricketer Sachin Tendulkar...
and off-spinner Rajesh Chauhan
Rajesh Chauhan
Rajesh Kumar Chauhan is a former Indian cricketer who played in 21 Tests and 35 ODIs from 1993 to 1998. He was part of the Indian spin trio of Kumble-Raju-Chauhan, in the 1990s....
made their test debut against England at Eden Garden, Calcutta, in Jan 1993. Navjot Singh Sidhu
Navjot Singh Sidhu
Navjot Singh Sidhu is former Indian cricket star . After retirement from cricket Navjot Singh Sidhu took up television commentary, and politics. He was later forced to resign from his political position because he was convicted of homicide.-Biography:...
was recalled to open the batting, and he remained a regular member of the Indian national team till the end of the decade. Maninder Singh
Maninder Singh
Maninder Singh is a former international cricket player who represented India in 35 Test matches and 59 One Day Internationals. With his slow left-arm orthodox spin, Maninder was considered as an heir to Bishan Singh Bedi, who then held the record as India's leading spinner in terms of wickets....
, the captain of the 'A' team, was recalled briefly, for the one-off test Match against Zimbabwe in March 1993. Ajay Sharma
Ajay Sharma
Ajay Kumar Sharma is a retired Indian cricketer.Sharma was a prolific run-maker in first-class cricket, mainly for Delhi, scoring over 10,000 runs at the high average of 67.46...
, the highest wickettaker of the tournament, earned himself a recall to the Indian ODI team. In contrast, the future Indian captain Sourav Ganguly
Sourav Ganguly
Sourav Chandidas Ganguly is a former Indian cricketer, and captain of the Indian national team. Born into an affluent family, Ganguly was introduced into the world of cricket by his elder brother Snehasish. He is regarded as one of India's most successful captains in modern times. He started his...
played in all the games, but never got the chance to bat. His only over in the tournament, against the Paks, went for 13 runs.
Pakistan didn't sent their strongest available team. Instead, they gave opportunity to some youngsters. The openers, Basit Ali
Basit Ali
Basit Ali is a former Pakistani cricketer who played in 19 Tests and 50 ODIs from 1993 to 1996. He was recognized by many to have a similar batting style as Javed Miandad. A right-hander, he has the relatively uncommon statistic of having a higher ODI than Test batting average...
and Shaheed Anwar, impressed with their aggressive batting. Their seamers did well, but they didn't have the quality spinner required for slow turning pitches. The Lankan team was very weak, and they were badly beaten in all the games. Still, The pacer Graham Labroy, bowled with plenty of hearts.
For the hosts, their best moment came on the opening day, with a crushing defeat of the Lankans. The medium pacers Saiful Islam
Saiful Islam
Mohammad Saiful Islam Khan is a former Bangladeshi cricketer who played in 7 ODIs from 1990 to 1997.Originally from Mymensingh, Saiful played for the Bangladesh U-19 side in 1989....
, Jahangir Alam Talukdar
Jahangir Alam Talukdar
Mohammad Jahangir Alam Talukdar is a former Bangladeshi cricketer who played in 2 ODIs in 1990.The left arm fast bowler first played for the Bangladesh side in the 3 day match against Pakistan in January 1986. But it was only from the 1989–90 season that he started to appear regularly in...
Dulu & Gholam Nousher
Gholam Nousher
Gholam Mohammad Nousher is a former Bangladeshi cricketer who played in 9 ODIs from 1986 to 1990.He was Bangladesh's main strike bowler during the 2nd half of the 1980s.-The early years:...
Prince bowled the opposition out for a mere 85. The Abedin brothers, Nobel
Nurul Abedin
Nurul Abedin is a former Bangladeshi cricketer born September 7, 1964 in Chittagong who played in 4 ODIs from 1986 to 1990.Nurul Abedin, more commonly known as Nobel, was the elder brother of Minhajul Abedin . Originally from Chittagong, the brothers were prominent figures in Dhaka cricket, in the...
& Nannu
Minhajul Abedin
Minhajul Abedin is a former Bangladeshi cricketer who played in 27 ODIs from 1986 to 1999. He captained Bangladesh twice during the Asia Cup of 1990–91. In local cricket arena he is more commonly known by his nickname, "Nannu".-Early days:Nannu caught the attention of the cricket selectors in the...
, then did the rest. The seamers bowled well again against Pakistan, putting them under pressure initially, but at the end the hosts didn't have enough runs on the board.
Top Batsmen of the Tournament(100 or more runs)
(Bangladesh V India Not Included)| Name | Matches | Runs | Average | Highest Score | 50 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vinod Kambli Vinod Kambli Vinod Ganpat Kambli is a former Indian cricketer, who played for India as a middle order batsman, as well as for Mumbai and Boland, South Africa.He is childhood friend of ace cricketer Sachin Tendulkar... (Ind) |
2 | 108 | -* | 62* | 1 |
| Navjot Singh Sidhu Navjot Singh Sidhu Navjot Singh Sidhu is former Indian cricket star . After retirement from cricket Navjot Singh Sidhu took up television commentary, and politics. He was later forced to resign from his political position because he was convicted of homicide.-Biography:... (Ind) |
2 | 131 | 131.00 | 95* | 1 |
| Surendara Bhave (Ind) | 2 | 123 | 61.50 | 81 | 1 |
| Basit Ali Basit Ali Basit Ali is a former Pakistani cricketer who played in 19 Tests and 50 ODIs from 1993 to 1996. He was recognized by many to have a similar batting style as Javed Miandad. A right-hander, he has the relatively uncommon statistic of having a higher ODI than Test batting average... (Pak) |
3 | 111 | 55.50 | 69* | 1 |
| Shaheed Anwar (Pak) | 3 | 105 | 35.00 | 65 | 1 |
- He batted twice and remained unbeaten on each occasion.
Top Bowlers of the Tournament (5 or More Wickets)
(Bangladesh V India Not Included)| Name | Matches | Runs | Wickets | Average | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ajay Sharma Ajay Sharma Ajay Kumar Sharma is a retired Indian cricketer.Sharma was a prolific run-maker in first-class cricket, mainly for Delhi, scoring over 10,000 runs at the high average of 67.46... (Ind) |
2 | 58 | 8 | 7.25 | 5/30 |
| Tanvir Mehedi (Pak) | 3 | 72 | 6 | 12.00 | 5/23 |
| Aamer Hanif Aamer Hanif Aamer Hanif is a former Pakistani cricketer who played five ODIs between 1993 to 1995.- References :... (Pak) |
3 | 100 | 5 | 20.00 | 4/36 |
An Eventual Success
Though the 1st SAARC Quadrangualr ended abruptly, the idea lived on. And in Dec. 1994, the 2nd event took place successfully. India, led by Pravin AmrePravin Amre
Pravin Kalyan Amre is an Indian cricketer.Amre represented India in 11 Test matches scoring one 100 and three 50s with a batting average of 42.50. However, these figures did not help him to become a regular fixture in the national team. He found himself in Indian colours just for two seasons...
won the trophy, beating Bangladesh in the final. Pakistan won the 3rd event, (Feb. 1997) beating arch rivals India in a rain affected final. Bangladesh lost all their 3 games in 1997, but it was by no means a disgraceful performance, as the oppositions in this tournament were far superior to anything before. In fact, this tournament provided a very useful preparation for the team which went to win the ICC Trophy
1997 ICC Trophy
The Carlsberg 1997 ICC Trophy was a cricket tournament played in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in March/April 1997. It was the qualification tournament for the 1999 Cricket World Cup. Kenya and for the first time Bangladesh and Scotland all Qualified.-First round:...
in April. Soon, Bangladesh became a full member the ICC, & with Bangladesh regularly hosting full ODI matches the need for the SAARC tournament became obsolete. Nevertheless, there is still considerable amount of 'A' grade cricket played among the South Asian nations.
External links
- http://www.articlesbase.com/cricket-articles/the-middle-ages-2022784.html The Middle Ages by Rafiqul Ameer