India will take on Pakistan in the Asia Cup final today, in what will be the first time in the tournament’s history that the arch-rivals meet in the summit clash of the continental tournament. Each time the two sides meet, it’s an emotionally-charged occasion for players as much as for fans. It’s such an important clash that legendary players like Sunil Gavaskar have changed their retirement plans just for the opportunity to face the other team one final time. As Gavaskar once revealed, he was on the verge of announcing his retirement from the sport when he was exhorted by Pakistan cricket legend Imran Khan to continue for just one more series because Pakistan were scheduled to come to India that year.
“‘You can’t retire now. Pakistan is coming to India next year, and I want to beat India in India. If you aren’t part of that team, it won’t be the same. Come on, let’s have one last tilt against each other,’ Imran Khan replied when I told him I planned to retire at the end of the India tour of England,” Gavaskar had revealed about his conversation with Imran Khan during lunch at Lord’s in 1986 in his column he wrote for the Times of India.
The 76-year-old further recalled telling Imran Khan that if the tour was not announced before the final Test against England, he would make the announcement.
“I said if the announcement of the tour wasn’t made before the final Test, I would go ahead and announce my retirement from international cricket. The tour was indeed announced in a few days,” Gavaskar wrote. “Pakistan won the last and final Test of that series after the earlier Tests were all drawn and thus beat India for the first time in India,” Gavaskar added.
Imran Khan was named the Player of the series for his all-round performance as he picked up eight wickets from five games and also managed to score 324 runs at an average of 64.80. Gavaskar, on the other hand, played only four games, scored 295 runs at an average of 49.17, and in the individual battle count, Imran Khan managed to pick Gavaskar twice, once in the 2nd Test at Jaipur for a duck and then in the 4th Test in Ahmedabad for 63 runs.
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