'When he got out he always used to leave cursing me. I enjoyed it': PAK legend recalls his verbal battles with Gavaskar

The Pakistan great has always reserved the highest respect for Gavaskar, but in a recent interview he recalled his verbal battles with the batter which he admits he enjoyed a lot.

India and Pakistan may not be playing bilateral contests since 2008 but the years before that had many memorable tales. Some good, some bad but the players of both the teams have shown great respect towards each other and have been friends off the field as well. Former Pakistan captain Javed Miandad is among them, who has always reserved the highest respect for India legend Sunil Gavaskar, but in a recent interview he recalled his verbal battles with the batter which he admits he enjoyed a lot.

Sunil Gavaskar

“I enjoyed watching him bat. I remember I used to field close to him and keep chattering away to distract him as his level of concentration and focus was so high,” he said. “There were times when I managed to disturb his focus and when he got out he always used to leave cursing me and I enjoyed it.” Miandad said in a video released by Pakistan Cricket Board.

In his utmost respect for Gavaskar, Pakistan great hailed his batting and opined that current generation of cricketers should watch video clips of his batting and how he managed to take on some of the best bowlers in Michael Holding, Andy Roberts, Malcolm Marshall, Imran Khan, Richard Hadlee, Dennis Lillee among others.

“It was amazing that given his short height, how well he played all over the world. His consistency and performances are remarkable,” Miandad said.

“Players nowadays can learn so much from watching his videos. See how he coped with the fast bowlers despite his short height. He played in an era where he faced the most fearsome pace bowlers in the West Indies, England, Australia, New Zealand and even against Pakistan and yet he was successful.”