The ODI men’s Cricket World Cup is round the corner and, as always, there is excitement in the cricket-loving people all over the world. This tournament is now 48 years old and has seen some exciting matches since its inception in 1975. In the first edition, the Asian teams struggled to come to terms with limited overs cricket. By the time the next World Cup took place in 1979, there was one Asian team that became quite adept at playing this format: Pakistan. This was because many of its cricketers had played county cricket in England.
Pakistan had a spectacular side in the 1979 World Cup with one player shining brightly. The seventh match of the tournament took place at Nottingham where Pakistan took on the formidable Australians. Majid Jahangir Khan made a unique record by becoming the first Asian player in ODI cricket to open the batting and bowling for his country in a match. He scored 61 in 100 balls, which was considered brisk in those days, and then took three crucial wickets. A well-set Graham Yallop was clean bowled; Gary Cosier was caught and bowled for a duck; and Khan’s third victim, Graeme Porter, was caught by Sadiq Mohammad, his fellow opening partner. Pakistan defeated the mighty Australians by 89 runs.
As an avid watcher of the sport who has seen Test cricket for more than 40 years, I am of the humble opinion that batters fall into three categories. The first are the swashbuckling types who on their day simply destroy the bowling. Next are the disciplined ones who milk the bowling and tire the bowlers out. The third category is the best. These batters are a joy to watch as they play their strokes with natural timing. They appear to be casual, as if they are not even aware of the match situation. Yet, they easily take the game away from the opposition. Majid Khan belonged to this category. His batting was from the golden amateur era when cricketers played for the love of the game. With the bat, he was an artist who had free-flowing strokes in his repertoire.
Majid Khan is the first batter from the subcontinent to score a century before lunch in Test cricket. It was in Karachi in 1976 that he scored 112 in 130 minutes of sublime batting, hitting 18 fours and two sixes in the process. This kind of striking was rare in the 1970s in Test cricket. The British press named him ‘Majestic Khan’ because of his attractive stroke play.
It is also interesting that Majid Khan’s initial liking was towards fast bowling and it was a back injury that turned him into a batsman. Eventually, Majid formed a formidable opening partnership with Sadiq Mohammad. Both came from illustrious cricketing families that had cricket in their blood.
Majid Khan had a wonderful mindset as a sportsperson. An interesting encounter that comes to mind was his duel with Dennis Lillee. The Australian pacer had decided to bounce Majid Khan but the latter hooked him for a six and then took off his trademark floppy hat and took a deep bow in accepting Lillee’s greatness as a bowler. Majid never believed in the concept of enmity in sport. He was a competitor for sure, but never indulged in rivalry. He was easily one of the best cricketers from his family, which created an environment of envy. In one of the darkest hours in Pakistan cricket, a member of his family, cousin Imran Khan, became a reason for the sudden and unfair end of Majid’s international career. Majid was too dignified to bring this out in the open.
Lone fighter against match-fixing in Pakistan cricket
The unique thing about him was that he stood for what Lahore was known for in the pre-Partition days. The spirit of Punjab and the famed large-heartedness of Lahore were very much visible in Majid Khan. This helped him when he became an administrator in Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB). He took on the biggest challenge in Pakistan cricket: the disease of match-fixing. He used every ounce of his energy and administrative skill to introduce anti-corruption laws in the game. It was an uphill task but Majid did not buckle down.
He fought hard to address the issue that the PCB would repeatedly brush under the carpet. Majid was extremely outspoken about the devil of match-fixing and urged the International Cricket Council (ICC) to bring in strict laws. Sadly, many of his own fellow countrymen, who happened to be in the cricket administration of Pakistan, did not back him. Yet, Majid kept fighting a lone battle in order to restore ethics in his country’s cricket culture. He never bothered about personal ambition or the perks that came with being a top cricket administrator in international cricket. In Majid’s case, it was actually a case of more thorns than roses.
Majid Khan was of the firm view that cricket should always put itself forth as a ‘gentleman’s game’. As a batter and administrator, he never forgot this elementary trait of the game of cricket. He took the bull by the horns, and strongly urged the ICC and PCB to acknowledge match-fixing as an international threat to cricket.
The official inquiry conducted by Justice Malik Mohammad Qayyum proved that Majid Khan was indeed right about match-fixing being an international threat to cricket. While the Justice Qayyum report is much publicised and well known, there was another interim probe committee inquiry conducted much before by Justice Choudhury Ejaz Yousuf, who recommended suspending certain players from international cricket. Much before these two probes had started, Majid Khan had already formally written to the Patron in Chief of Pakistan cricket to address the issue of match-fixing. He insisted on a judicial inquiry, as he knew that ordinary inquiries would fail at summoning some of the biggest names in international cricket. It is solely due to his efforts that led the Chief Justice of Lahore High court to form a one-man judicial commission headed by Justice Qayyum. It wasn’t Majid Khan’s fault that the findings were never implemented the way they should have been. By this time, Majid Khan had enough and keeping with his gentlemanly nature, decided to move away gracefully.
Decency and grace thy name was Majid Khan. He groomed whosoever approached him for advice on things on and off the field. One of the biggest beneficiaries of Majid’s advice was ace wicket-keeper Rashid Latif who credits Majid for building his moral character. Latif learned the importance of discipline and ethics from Majid Khan when the latter was the team manager. Majid Khan was the first to enter the team bus on time even though he was a senior legend and a powerful administrator. Latif learned the importance of punctuality and discipline from Majid Khan. Latif also learned the importance of ethical conduct outside the cricket field. Majid led by example on and off the field. He wasn’t keen to hog the limelight and was never desperate to hold on to the perks and power.
Ludhiana-born Majid Khan’s father Jahangir Khan represented India in Test cricket and athletics (Javelin). Majid Khan’s cricketing pedigree is high not just because three generations of his family played Test cricket, but because he is the perfect gentleman with impeccable ethics on and off the field of cricket. Had he been Indian, he would have been given the ‘Padma Vibhushan’ for his services in the field of cricket.
Kush Singh in association with former Pakistan cricket captain Rashid Latif. Views are personal.
(Edited by Prashant)