Cricket is known for its glorious uncertainties – and also uncanny similarities. These similarities can be any time-period apart, up to 100 years. Yes, that’s true. The current generation of cricket followers, despite an overdose of cricket statistics and date in the public domain, including social media, may not know that something unique happened in the first ever Test match in 1877 and the centenary Test exactly 100 years later, in 1977.
Those social media addicted fans who are expressing their amazement over stark similarities of Pakistan’s campaigns at the 1992 World Cup and at the ongoing World Cup (so far) would do well to recall those two Test matches, 100 years apart, between Australia and England had produced exactly the same result!
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The David William Gregory-led Australia had defeated James Lillywhite’s England by 45 runs in Melbourne in March 1877. And, when Tony Greig’s England visited Down Under to play the Centenary Test, to commemorate 100 years of Test match cricket, in March 1977, Greg Chappell’s Aussies beat the tourists, by a huge coincidence, again by 45 runs!
Well, yes, the margin of victories were the same, and a century apart. Can you beat this strange coincidence? Well...yes. And this one is about Pakistan’s remarkably similar World Cup campaigns in 1992 and in 2019 (thus far). It is the mother (or, father, if you please) of all coincidences in the 44-year World Cup history.
In 1992, Imran Khan’s team started extremely poorly and recovered unbelievably remarkably to go on to win the title against all predictions and expectations. They lost to the West Indies by 10 wickets in the first match, beat Zimbabwe by 53 runs and their game against England was a no-result. They then lost successive matches, to India by 43 runs and to South Africa by 20 runs. Pakistan’s brilliant recovery started with wins over Australia and they went on to beat Sri Lanka and New Zealand, the last win took them into the semi-finals. Imran’s “cornered tigers” again defeated New Zealand in the semi-finals and edged past England in the final. Imran went on to become his country’s Prime Minister 26 years later, in 2018.
Twenty-seven years later, Pakistan again lost to the West Indies in the 2019 World Cup opener. Sarfaraz Ahmed’s team quickly pulled up their socks and stunned hot favourites and host England by 14 runs, before their game against Sri Lanka was washed out without a ball being bowled. Then, defending champions Australia crushed Pakistan by 41 runs and Virat Kohli’s India edged past them in a rain-interrupted match. Pakistan again recovered to beat South Africa and New Zealand convincingly. So far the 1992 World Cup story has been replayed. Will Pakistan continue to repeat the rest of the campaign of 1992 – and become the Prime Minister of Pakistan like Imran 26 years later, in 2045? Well, well...
