The world is coming down
The flags are up
Whose gonna be number one
Whose gonna take out the cup
Who will it be?
Who will be the King?
It is a once in a lifetime chaaaaance
Who'll rule the world
Gotta see who'll rule the world


25th March 1992.

Today marks the 25th anniversary of that magical World Cup win for Pakistan. After all these years, I have that day (and the days leading up to it) engraved in memory.

No one expected Pakistan to be in the Final in 1992, let alone win it. It was a typical Pakistani comeback and win, a win against all the odds, a win when no one expected it, a win that placed Pakistan at the top of the world.

Around the middle of the World Cup 1992, I remember Newspaper headlines saying "Pakistan going home early", "Pakistan's World Cup chances over", "Imran Khan's dream ends". Everyone thought Pakistan's World Cup campaign was over.

Except Imran Khan. He kept saying that this World Cup was Pakistan's.

It is quite possible that because of that improbable World Cup win (and Miandad's 6 in 1986) that some Pakistan cricket fans today still believe that the impossible is achievable in every game Pakistan plays.

The passion still burns with abundance fire!

I remember the day before the final in 1992. After coming back from school, I begged my parents to let me skip school the next day, a Wednesday (25.03.1992) so that I could watch the final.

I don't think I have ever asked my parents to let me skip school with an honest reason. It was always "pait ka dard"!

But this was cricket. It was the World Cup. It was the Final. And it was Pakistan!

My parents firmly said no.

The match was supposed to start in the morning around the time I would leave for school.

I begged and cried to no avail.

I went to bed that night sulking thinking I'll miss Pakistan's most important cricket match ever.

As on every other school day, my mother woke me up on the morning of 25th March 1992.

As I glanced towards the wall clock, it was past the time that school would start.

I don't think I have ever woken up happier.

I don't know which one of my parents decided that I could skip school that day, but I did. As did my brother.

My father skipped work. As did many of his friends, a lot of whom were over at our place in Abu Dhabi, ready for Pakistan's biggest game ever.

We were all glued to Channel 33, the lifeline of Television in the UAE in those days; it provided all of our entertainment from cartoons, to soap operas, comedy shows, Bollywood movies, Wimbledon finals, and now the final of the World Cup 1992.

All the way from Imran Khan sporting a white t-shirt with a tiger on it to what he said at the toss ...


... the quick loss of Rameez Raja and Aamer Sohail, Imran Khan and Javed Miandad's partnership, Imran's six, Miandad's reverse sweep, Inzamam Ul Haq and Wasim Akram's aggressive finish ...


... Botham's dismissal and Aamer Sohail's finger pointing, Mushtaq Ahmed's spell, Aaquib Javed's catch, Wasim Akram's two magical deliveries ...



... Moin Khan's catch and run-out, Rameez Raja's catch, Aamer Sohail and Zahid Fazal's sajdas, Imran Khan's raised arms ...


... Imran and Miandad's hug, Wasim Akram's man of the match award ...


... Imran Khan lifting the World Cup and his speech ...


... everything, absolutely everything is engraved in memory even today.

I even remember the scorecard of the match!

What a day it was.

When it all ended, the evening was spent rejoicing. Even more so because Thursday and Friday was the weekend so school was far far away :-)


There was no internet back then so we had to wait the next day for the newspaper to land at our doorstep to read all the coverage.

I still have the front page of Khaleej Times from the morning after, 26th March 1992.


Pakistan was indeed on top of the world.

It has been 25 years, but the memories are still fresh.

25th March 1992.

It was an unforgettable day! Pakistan's most memorable day of cricket!

It doesn't matter whether Pakistan's test team is the number 1 test team in the world or on their worst ever losing streak in test cricket, Pakistan's test batsmen continue to rewrite history. They continue to establish records and set new benchmarks.

First it was Asad Shafiq, then Azhar Ali, and now it is Pakistan's one and only King Khan, the undisputed master of test cricket batting, Younis Khan.

Younis has been a man on a mission for the past half a decade. He has piled on the runs, broken all of Pakistan's batting records, scored more runs and centuries than any other Pakistani batsman, is n the verge of becoming the first batsman from Pakistan to score 10,000 test runs, and continues to reach new heights that even other international batsmen have not reached.

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Number of Test Centuries
His unbeaten century on the 3rd day at the SCG against Australia was his 34th test hundred. This places him level with legends like Sunil Gavaskar, Brian Lara, and Mahela Jayawardene. Only 5 batsmen have more test centuries than Younis now.

The Best from Pakistan by a StretchMost runs, most centuries, and highest average among all batsmen ever to play test cricket for Pakistan. That too by a stretch, for runs and centuries.

Foreign Test Hundreds
Two weeks ago Asad Shafiq became the only Pakistan batsman after Saeed Anwar to score a test century in each of Australia, South Africa, and England.

Now, Younis Khan has also achieved this feat.

Test Centuries in all Countries
When Younis Khan scored a century against Australia in the UAE in 2014, he became the first batsman from Pakistan and the twelfth from the world to score a test century against all test playing nations.

Now, when Younis has scored a century in Australia, he has become the only batsman in the world after Rahul Dravid to score a century in every test playing nation.

But there is something more unique about Younis Khan's feat. He has become the only batsman in the world to score a century in every country that has hosted a test match - the 10 test playing nations and the UAE!

Dravid never played a test in the UAE; while Yousuf, Sangakkara, and Jayawardene have not scored a test century in South Africa, West Indies, and South Africa respectively.

Best Performer vs Australia
Till two years ago, Younis Khan had no test century against Australia. Now, he has 4, which places him behind only Javed Miandad and Ijaz Ahmed, each of whom have scored 6 test centuries against Australia.

Younis also has the best average among all Pakistan batsmen who scored over 1,000 test runs against Australia.

Frequency & Conversion of Test Centuries
Among all test batsmen with at least 20 centuries, after Sir Donald Bradman, Younis Khan has the highest frequency of scoring a century, every 6.06 innings, and the best conversion ratio (CR) of 51.5%, which basically means that Younis coverts 51.5% of his fifties into hundreds.

Pakistan has lost the series against Australia. They may even go on to be cleanly swept 3-0. But this series will be remembered for some special innings by Pakistan's batsmen; this series will be remembered for Asad Shafiq at the Gabba, Azhar Ali at the MCG, and Younis Khan at the SCG.

Pakistan's current test team has achieved a lot since Misbah took over its reins in 2010. Likewise, its batsmen, particularly Younis Khan, Misbah Ul Haq, Azhar Ali, and Asad Shafiq have achieved a hell of a lot over this period - more than what any of their predecessors ever achieved.

All these achievements have become a little bit sweeter with what Azhar and Asad have managed to do in Australia. Their feats have been remarkable.

While Asad was the hero at the Gabba, Azhar owned the MCG!

1. First Double Century by a Pakistan Batsman in Australia

Azhar Ali's unbeaten 205 in the boxing day test at the MCG is the highest score by a Pakistani batsman in Australia in 33 years and earned him the honor of becoming the first ever batsman from Pakistan to hit a double century in Australia.

2. Highest Score by a Visiting Opener in Australia

Azhar Ali's 205* is only the fourth double century by a visiting opener in Australia and the third highest score by a visiting opener in Australia.

3. First Double Century by a Visiting Opener at the MCG

Azhar Ali's 205* broke Virender Sehwag's record of the highest score recorded by a visiting opener at the MCG and earned him the honor of becoming the first ever visiting opener to hit a double century at the MCG.

Azhar Ali is only the third opener ever in the history of test cricket to score a double century at this historical venue. The other two are Bill Lawry and Justin Langer.

4. 1,000 Tests Runs in a Calendar Year

During his double century knock at the MCG, Azhar Ali completed 1,000 runs in test cricket in 2016. This first time he has achieved this feat since his debut in 2010.

Azhar became only the 5th batsman from Pakistan to complete 1,000 runs in test cricket in a calendar year, after Mohammad Yousuf, Younis Khan, Inzamam Ul Haq, and Mohsin Khan.

Azhar's tally of 1,155 is the third highest by a Pakistani batsman in a calendar year, and he has the opportunity to improve that to the second highest if Pakistan get a second innings crack at the MCG.

5. Most Runs by a Pakistan Opener in a Calendar Year

Out of Azhar's 1,155 runs this year, 939 runs have come as an opener, which is the second highest tally by a Pakistan opener in tests in a calendar year.

6. Pakistan's / World's Leading Run Scorer in 2016

With 1,155 runs in tests in 2016, Azhar is the leading run scorer from Pakistan and sits at number 5 among the leading run scorers of the year.

And look at that average! Second best among top 10 runs scorers of the year, behind only Virat Kohli.

Azhar Ali has had a magnificent year in test cricket. A triple hundred and a double hundred in the same calendar year is rare, and he has become the first batsman from Pakistan to achieve this feat. He is just entering his peak years as a batsman and one can only imagine what more he can achieve going forward.