Forty years ago, on a hot, arid afternoon in Sharjah, Pakistan’s Javed Miandad waltzed into the history books with one mighty swing of the willow.

It was April 18, 1986, when the final of the Austral-Asia Cup between fierce rivals India and Pakistan took place at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium.

Chasing 245, a big total in 50-over cricket back in the day, Pakistan were in dire straits, losing wickets at regular intervals.

But one man — Miandad — remained resolute. Despite the steep asking rate, he kept the scorecard ticking with his clever running between the wickets.

Miandad rarely hit boundaries, yet he kept taking Pakistan closer to the target almost single-handedly.

But as the crowd held its collective breath, Pakistan lost wickets again, slumping to 241 for nine from 209 for six.

Inevitably, it came down to the last ball with Pakistan needing four to win with just one wicket in hand.

Indian pace bowler Chetan Sharma attempted a yorker only to get it wrong as Miandad hit the full-toss out of the ground to pull off the most incredible victory, sparking wild celebrations.

His 116 not out off 114 balls was a masterclass in the art of chasing, but it was that one six that remains immortal.

Jubilant fans

Last Saturday (April 18) marked the 40th anniversary of that historic encounter at Sharjah Cricket Stadium.

Among the 15,000 fans that witnessed that unforgettable game was Mohamed Lokhandwala.

“It was a brilliant match; nobody thought Pakistan was going to win because India was dominating them. But Javed never gave up,” Lokhandwala said during an interview with Khaleej Times.

A former Indian club-level cricketer who went on to become the manager of the UAE national team, Lokhandwala, recalled the jubilant scenes after Miandad accomplished the seemingly impossible mission.

“Pakistan fans jumped over the fence and ran into the ground to hug Javed and Tauseef Ahmed, the number 11, who scored just one run,” Lokhandwala recalled.

“It was a heartbreaking moment for us as Indian fans, but a great one for Pakistan cricket.”

Miandad became an instant hero after his epic hundred.

“He received so many gifts from the Pakistani community in the UAE. He became a national icon in Pakistan. Anything he asked for was made available to him,” Lokhandwala said.

Qamar Ahmed, a former Pakistan first-class cricketer who later became a cricket correspondent for the BBC, explained why Miandad’s illustrious career is often defined by that one six.

“It came against India, and that is what matters most — achieving something big against India is a huge deal. The stakes are always so high. That’s why it became such an iconic moment in Pakistan cricket history,” Ahmed told Khaleej Times.

Mental strength

It was only five days ago that Ahmed met Miandad at a dinner hosted by former Pakistan batsman Shoaib Mohammed in Karachi.

“A couple of fans turned up from the neighbourhood when they realised Javed was there. And they asked him the same question, ‘How did you hit a six in the last ball?’ Imagine he still has to answer that all these years later,” Ahmed said.

“People are still fascinated by the six because back in the day, nobody thought hitting a shot like that on the last ball was possible. Cricket was very different in those days, but Javed always had that mental strength. He never gave up a fight!”

But the most abiding memory for Ahmed from Miandad’s cricketing journey was not that six against India.

“I will never forget when he showed the bat to Imran Khan as a symbolic statement after scoring a Test hundred against the West Indies. Imran had questioned his greatness as a player because he had never scored a century against the hostile pace Windies’ pace attack. Javed responded with back-to-back Test hundreds in the West Indies in 1988,” said Ahmed.

"Then he wasn't even picked for the 1992 World Cup. But eventually when they brought him into the team, he ended up becoming the second best batsman of the tournament after Martin Crowe.

"He played match-winning knocks in the semifinal (against New Zealand) and the final (against England). So he was that sort of character who would never give up!"

Tauseef Ahmed, former Pakistan spinner and Miandad’s last-wicket partner in the 1986 Sharjah final against India, echoed those sentiments.

“I was very nervous when I walked in as the last man. We needed five runs with two balls in hand. I was facing the fifth ball. I pushed it to cover, and Mohammad Azharuddin (of India) had a chance to run me out, but his throw missed the stumps by a big margin. We survived,” Tauseef told Khaleej Times over the phone from Pakistan.

“I was still nervous when I spoke to Javed before the last ball. But Javed was confident. So when Chetan Sharma missed that yorker, Javed hit the full-toss out of the ground. It was one of the greatest moments of my cricketing life!”

The classic battle between the game's greatest rivals also put Sharjah on the world cricket map.

“We have had so many great matches (in Sharjah), but that was perhaps the greatest match we have ever seen,” said Mazhar Khan, General Manager of Sharjah Cricket Stadium.

“That Miandad six defined Sharjah cricket; it instantly made him a hero, and Sharjah became a household name in the cricketing world.”

1986 Austral-Asia Cup final (April 18) in Sharjah

Pakistan beat India by one wicket.

India 245/7 in 50 overs (Sunil Gavaskar 92, Kris Srikkanth 75, Dilip Vengsarkar 50; Wasim Akram 3-42, Imran Khan 2-40)

Pakistan 248/9 in 50 overs (Javed Miandad 116 not out, Mohsin Khan 36, Abdul Qadir 34, Chetan Sharma 3/51, Maninder Singh 1/36, Kapil Dev 1/45)