India v Pakistan: Five Classic Encounters Between Cricket's Sworn Enemies

Rivalries are predominant in every sport in the world, while football has some well known rivalries like Liverpool and Manchester United, El Clasico between Barcelona and Real Madrid, etc to name a few. Matches between the two sides eagerly brings forth a tense atmosphere on both camps while they show nothing but sheer despise for each other on and off the field.

Cricket too has its own rivalry which sees two nations from the Indian subcontinent engage in a gruelling battle on the field. India and Pakistan recently pitted their wits in the Asia Cup 2014 which saw the defending champions beat India with Shahid Afridi smashing two sixes in the last over to help his team chase the target of 246 runs.

India and Pakistan, two nations that were not separated by any borders once upon a time will clash for supremacy once again in the 2014 edition of the T20 World Cup in Bangladesh. IBTimes UK highlights five previous mouth-watering clashes across the three recognised forms of cricket (One Day International, T20I and Tests) between the two nations that kept every cricket fan hooked on and off the stadium across the countries.

India v Pakistan - Austral-Asia Cup, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates: 18 April, 1986

Result: Pakistan won by one wicket

India and Pakistan battled for glory in the inaugural Austral-Asia Cup final which saw Pakistan secure a dramatic victory off the last ball of the game, courtesy of Javed Miandad's unbeaten knock of 116 runs.

Led by their 1983 World Cup winning captain Kapil Dev, India scored a challenging total of 245 runs in 50 overs. Krishnamachari Srikkanth (75) and Sunil Gavaskar (92) anchored the innings along with Dilip Vengsarkar, who scored an even half-century.

Chasing 246 runs, Pakistan got off to a disappointing start by losing their first wicket (Mudassar Nazar) with just nine runs on the scoreboard. They seemed to be heading for defeat when they lost Ramiz Raja with 39 runs on the tally. Miandad then stepped up to the plate to attempt a rescue mission, even as his partners failed to support him in the act.

Imran Khan's side kept losing wickets, but Miandad's century kept alive Pakistan's hopes of lifting the cup. Needing four runs from to win with one ball, and one wicket, remaining, the right-handed batsman sent Chetan Sharma's delivery flying over the boundary rope to secure the victory against their arch rivals.

India v Pakistan - 1<sup>st Test, Chennai, India: 28 - 31 January, 1999

Result: Pakistan won by 12 runs

Playing their first test match on Indian soil in over a decade, Pakistan drew first blood in the three-match Test series, wrapping up the first game in four days.

Neither side gained a decisive advantage on first innings, but Shahid Afridi threatened to take the game away from India with an innings of 141 on the third day. However India kept takings, and eventually the hosts were left with a target of 271 - a tough target given none of the first three innings had passed 300.

India got off to a feeble start losing two wickets for just five runs, and when Dravid went cheaply, the game looked up. But Tendulkar took his cue to play one of the all-time great innings, dragging his side back into contention run by exquisite run.

But a further twist was still to come. Tendulkar and Mongia were dismissed in quick succession with the finish line in site, and the wily duo of Saqlain Mushtaq and Wasim Akram rattled through the tail.

India were all out for 258 as Pakistan registered a 12-run victory, a match which more than lived up to the hype and the occasion.

India v Pakistan - 2003 Cricket World Cup, South Africa: 1 March, 2003

Result: India won by six wickets

Prior to their meeting in the World Cup in 2003, India and Pakistan had faced each other three times and India had won on all three occasions. In South Africa they registered a memorable fourth victory on their way to the final.

Saeed Anwar's 101 helped Pakistan set a decent target of 274, but India's phalanx of star batsmen cashed in on the flat deck, requiring less than 46 overs to win.

Sachin Tendulkar played another memorable innings, scoring 98 runs off 75 deliveries, and a stand of 99 between Rahul Dravid and Yuvraj Singh saw India home.

Pakistan v India - 1<sup>st ODI, Karachi, Pakistan: 13 March, 2004

Result: India won by 5 runs

Touring Pakistan for the first time since 1997, India managed to defeat the hosts by just five runs and set up a series victory.

The opening pair of Virender Sehwag (79) and Tendulkar (28) gave a bright start before Rahul Dravid, Saurav Ganguly and Mohammad Kaif helped India post a huge total of 349 runs in 50 overs. Dravid fell just one short of his century, a cruel and inglorious end to a truly sumptuous innings.

Yet Pakistan hit back through Yousuf Youhana and captain Inzamam-ul-Haq, who scored a superb century, before Younis Khan and Abdul Razzaq belted their team towards victory. When Shoaib Malik was dismissed in the penultimate over, Pakistan needed 10 runs from seven deliveries - a cakewalk in the context of such a high-scoring game.

But India dragged their way back with a tight final over from Ashish Nehra, and sealed victory when Moin Khan failed to hit a six of the final ball. A memorable way to bring cricket's fiercest rivalry back to Pakistan.

India v Pakistan - T20 World Cup Final, South Africa: 24 September, 2007

Result: India won by 5 runs

The inaugural T20 World Cup produced a final which must have left the marketing men salivating; India and Pakistan, cricket's two fiercest rivals and arguably it's biggest one-day devotees, squaring off in the final.

Winning the toss, India elected to bat first with Gautam Gambhir scoring 75 runs in 54 deliveries smashing eight fours and two sixes in the process. His partners however, kept tumbling one after the other before the opener's eventual dismissal in the 18<sup>th over with 130 runs on the board.

A late flurry from Rohit Sharma and Irfan Pathan helped India to 157, a score no better than par. But Pakistan got off to a dismal start and suffered a fatal blow when Imran Nazir was run out by Robin Uthappa.

But, Rohit Sharma was scored two fours and one six while adding 10 more runs utilising his pace along with Irfan Pathan's contribution of three runs to help his side score 157 runs by the end of their innings.

The wickets kept falling at regular intervals, and Pakistan went into the final over needing 13 runs with just one wicket in hand.

Needing 20 runs to win from 12 balls, Umar Gul walked back to the pavilion without adding a single run. With only Misbah-ul-Haq and Mohammad Asif remaining Pakistan needed 13 runs from the last six balls.

Joginder Sharma was handed the responsibility of steering India to a win by MS Dhoni and the fast-bowler started off delivering a wide ball. Misbah-ul-Haq then smashed a six from the second ball and the game seemed to be slipping from India's grasp.

However, the right-handed batsman attempted a scoop shot hoping that it would fly over short fine-leg but the ball fell kindly for Sreesanth to ensure India secured another five-run triumph.