Abdul Hafeez Kardar, the first Test cricket captain of Pakistan and Younis Khan, Pakistan’s T20 World Cup winning captain, were honoured by being inducted into the Pakistan Cricket Hall of Fame recently.
According to a press release issued by the Pakistan Cricket Board, the two cricketers have joined eight others–Abdul Qadir, Fazal Mahmood, Hanif Mohammad, Imran Khan, Javed Miandad, Waqar Younis, Wasim Akram and Zaheer Abbas in the Hall of Fame.
Abdul Hafeez Kardar was one of the most colourful and well known personalities of cricket who emerged from the Indian subcontinent. He is one of the three cricketers to have represented both India and Pakistan in Test matches. Besides being an excellent cricketer he was also a politician and diplomat. He served as a member of the Provincial Assembly of Punjab (Pakistan) and was the Minister for Food and Agriculture. He was also the President of the Pakistan Cricket Board from 1972 to 1977. Later he was appointed Pakistan’s ambassador to Switzerland. He has also authored ten books, some on cricket and some on politics.
As a captain and senior player, Kardar belonged to the old school. His deportment, his immaculate dress, his impeccable command of the English language and his manners made it obvious that he belonged to an elite family. On and off the field, Kardar developed a uniquely personal style in all that he did. It is said that he was influenced by Iftikhar Ali Khan Pataudi as the two were good friends. Like the Nawab, Kardar too bought his suits from apparel designers in the well-known Jermyn Street in London.
Kardar’s saturnine good looks made him resemble some of the top Hollywood actors of those days. Kardar took pride in his Oxford education although his envious critics sometimes said that he carried this trait to the point of absurdity. He always dressed like an English gentleman and instructed his teammates on the proper table manners and etiquette whenever they were in England.
As a player Kardar was a man of exceptional courage and led his team from the front. It was in 1956 that he was at his peak. He had overcome the challenge to his position as captain from the equally talented and meritorious Mian Mohammed Saeed. Aged 31, Kardar had the right blend of youth and experience. He was full of confidence at this stage of his career and often spearheaded rear guard fight backs while his deceptive spin bowling could destroy rival batting line ups.
When it came to facing fast bowlers, Kardar never flinched from the speed demons Frank Tyson of England or Roy Gilchrist of the West Indies. Even when the ball hit him on his body, he stood erect and upright, never losing his composure. Needless to say, he soon became a celebrated figure. Although he called himself a shy person, he was at ease whether it was at a gathering in his native Pakistan or at parties in Oxford, London and New York.
Kardar was appointed captain of the Pakistan team which played its first official Test series against India in 1952–53 with Lala Amarnath as the Indian captain. Although India won Tests in Delhi and Bombay, Pakistan achieved their first Test victory in the Test in Lucknow.
Kardar captained Pakistan against all the Test playing nations and achieved the distinction of leading his team to victory against each of the rivals. Especially famous was the series-levelling victory achieved while touring England in 1954. Kardar and his men also created history by winning the first-ever and only Test against Australia in Karachi in 1957.
Kardar had a complex relationship with the flamboyant Fazal Mehmood. The two of them fluctuated between cordiality and coolness. They were good friends from their boyhood in Lahore but according to Fazal Mehmood, after Kardar returned from his studies at Oxford, he was a changed man. Despite this, there is no doubt that the two of them struck up a superb combination for Pakistan. They put the fledgling Pakistan cricket on firm ground and laid the foundation for many great players and performances that followed. Kardar’s induction in Pakistan’s Cricket Hall of Fame is truly well deserved.
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