1965: The year India, Pakistan began sparring in sports

Before 1965, India and Pakistan had squared off on the playing field on several occasions. Despite the bitterness of the Partition, most of the encounters in cricket, hockey and football were held in a cordial atmosphere though there were intimations of the high stakes involved. It was in 1952 that India had the opportunity to play Pakistan for the first time on the cricket field. Abdul Hafeez Kardar, who had represented the undivided Indian side in the 1946 tour of England, led the Pakistan team. An Oxford Blue in cricket, Kardar had, according to Ramachandra Guha, a “deep commitment to the idea of Pakistan” and would later become a prominent politician.

The first Test match between the two neighbours was played in Delhi and inaugurated by President Rajendra Prasad. The series was played in good spirit though Hindu groups tried to disrupt the matches. In Nagpur, where Pakistan played a match, the president of the Hindu Mahasabha, N B Khare, announced that his party would stage protests outside the stadium. In a preemptive move Khare was arrested prompting the Pakistani paper, Dawn, to proclaim that the Hindu leader had been “bowled out.” The stands were packed for all the matches, early indications of the passions generated by India-Pakistan contests.

Three years later, India went to Pakistan for a five-Test tour. A dull draw in the first Test at Dhaka was a sign of the safety-first cricket that was to follow resulting in all Test matches ending in a draw. Wisden described the cricket as “two boxers tentatively sparring for an opening.”

But the lack of excitement on the field was compensated by the enthusiasm off it. For the third Test match in Lahore, 10,000 Indians crossed the border at Wagah every day and returned by evening. Dawn called it the “biggest mass migration across the frontier since the Partition.” However, there were reports of a heated exchange between Kardar and India’s captain, Vinoo Mankad, at a banquet, which at the time was not reported.

In the 1950s, both India and Pakistan were not considered among the top teams in cricket. In hockey, however, the situation was quite different with India having won the Olympic gold medal every time since the 1928 Games. Though the Indian and Pakistani national sides had not played each other after Independence, the Punjab Police team had toured Pakistan to play their counterparts, the west Punjab Police, in 1955. In Lahore, banners were put up welcoming the “friends from neighbouring India” and according to official estimates, some 60,000 Indians were expected to cross the border to witness the matches. India and Pakistan’s national teams first played against each other on the hockey field in the final of the 1956 Olympic Games with India winning by a solitary goal.

India and Pakistan renewed their cricketing rivalry in 1961-62. The cricket was as dull as the previous series with all five Tests as well as 15 first-class matches ending in a draw, a dubious record of sorts. According to Wisden, “the chief aim of the contestants appeared to be to uphold national prestige by avoiding defeat.” The bonhomie of the two earlier series had evaporated to some extent with Indian batsman Abbas Ali Baig receiving threat letters that accused him of deliberately playing poorly.

But the lack of excitement on the field was compensated by the enthusiasm off it. For the third Test match in Lahore, 10,000 Indians crossed the border at Wagah every day and returned by evening. Dawn called it the “biggest mass migration across the frontier since the Partition.” However, there were reports of a heated exchange between Kardar and India’s captain, Vinoo Mankad, at a banquet, which at the time was not reported.

In the 1950s, both India and Pakistan were not considered among the top teams in cricket. In hockey, however, the situation was quite different with India having won the Olympic gold medal every time since the 1928 Games. Though the Indian and Pakistani national sides had not played each other after Independence, the Punjab Police team had toured Pakistan to play their counterparts, the west Punjab Police, in 1955. In Lahore, banners were put up welcoming the “friends from neighbouring India” and according to official estimates, some 60,000 Indians were expected to cross the border to witness the matches. India and Pakistan’s national teams first played against each other on the hockey field in the final of the 1956 Olympic Games with India winning by a solitary goal.

India and Pakistan renewed their cricketing rivalry in 1961-62. The cricket was as dull as the previous series with all five Tests as well as 15 first-class matches ending in a draw, a dubious record of sorts. According to Wisden, “the chief aim of the contestants appeared to be to uphold national prestige by avoiding defeat.” The bonhomie of the two earlier series had evaporated to some extent with Indian batsman Abbas Ali Baig receiving threat letters that accused him of deliberately playing poorly.