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Qamar Ahmed: A front-seat storyteller on cricket’s highway is no more

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By K.R. Nayar Almost everyone called him Q, but for me he was Qamar bhai. Pakistan’s veteran cricket writer and commentator, Qamar Ahmed, who passed away on June 18, 2026, was someone with whom I’ve travelled a lot. To be precise, we travelled together whenever he came to Dubai, listening to his many stories. The first message I received after the passing away of 88 year old Qamar was from another Pakistan journalist and close friend, Shahid Hashmi. He wrote: “The front seat in your car (where Qamar always sat) will remain vacant. Our journey mate during matches in the UAE is no more.” With Qamar Ahmed after he received a memento from the Pakistan Cricket Board after he reported his 423rd Test match in Dubai in 2016. The energy with which Qamar came to report matches always defied his age. Not once did I get the impression that the man seated next to me was in his 80s. It was the tales he narrated about his first-class debut in 1956 for Sind against Karachi Whites, and how he h...
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Four-year victory drought for Pakistan over India

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By K.R. Nayar  Following the Indian women’s team’s 64-run victory over Pakistan in the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup on June 14, 2026, it will be nearly four years since Pakistan’s men’s and women’s teams have beaten India. The last time Pakistan’s men’s team beat India was on September 4, 2022, in a Super 4 match at the 2022 Asia Cup in Dubai, winning by 5 wickets. The last time the women's team beat India was on October 7, 2022, during the Women's T20 Asia Cup in Bangladesh, securing a 13-run victory.  A rivalry once defined by edge-of-the-seat uncertainty now seems to walk a predictable script. Pakistan-India matches have in the past produced many exciting moments; but it now seems like Pakistan is not playing against India but against themselves. Against India, scoreboards aren’t chased — they are feared. In some matches, Pakistan have looked like world- beaters, but often, in matches against India, they play like strangers to the game.  Debates on why Pakistan...
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Soccer fever hits my cricket crazy friend

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By K.R. Nayar  Until yesterday, my cricket-crazy friend had no issues. He would often use cricket terms to convey messages, and that became his way of talking. When he was broke at the end of the month, he would say he was clean bowled for money. And when it was time to pay at a restaurant, he would claim he got yorked for money that month. When I had asked him to repay me the money he had borrowed, he said pitch conditions were not favourable. I knew his wallet always had a lot of swing and seam movement.  Now all of a sudden, he has switched to using soccer terms following the start of the World Cup soccer. When I repeated the request for my money, his response was that his finances were a Messi. The other day when and I was waiting to pick him up, he messaged me that he was only kicking in and I would have to wait for some time. His reason for being late was that the final whistle for sleep did not happen. By then I was hungry and decided to take him along for br...
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Kane Williamson: A timeless gentleman cricketer of the modern era

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By K.R. Nayar  A cricketer who can always be proudly named as a role model has retired from international cricket. New Zealand’s Kane Williamson’s retirement from international cricket on June 12, 2026, can be marked in golden letters as the day one of the world’s greatest gentleman cricketers quietly walked away from the game, just as he played it: with grace, dignity, and no fuss. Kane Williamson. Photos: Blackcaps twitter  Williamson was a batter anyone would love to watch. Following his retirement, stories about his feats as a player and as a captain are everywhere, but for me, what stands out is his attitude. He was not just the ambassador for the New Zealand team but for world cricket. I was one among the many journalists who had tears after his press conference speech on losing to England in the 2019 ICC World Cup final at Lord’s. He did not complain about the controversial “more boundaries” rule that decided the winner. He accepted the result with a calm smile, which...
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Howzaat to Goooal: When World Cup Soccer fever replaces Cricket fever

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 By K.R. Nayar The World Cup soccer has commenced, and cricket fever will now be replaced by soccer fever. The big difference will be that while the shiver caused by soccer fever lasts 105 to 110 minutes since the match is split into two 45-minute halves, the T20 World Cup and franchise leagues last a little more than 180 minutes, with a duration of one hour and thirty minutes per innings. Screams of “Howzaat” and “Out” will be replaced by “Goal.” Unlike “Howzaat” and “Out,” which have an abrupt end, the scream expressing the joy of a goal lasts long – “goooal” till all the air in the lungs has been released. The applause for a cover drive will be replaced by long cheering for a diving save by the goalkeeper. Those who were not clear about the Duckworth-Lewis (DL) calculation for a rain-affected match or how to calculate the run rate in cricket will now try to learn the offside rules. Soon it will dawn on them that the offside rule is easier to understand than the DL method. ...
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Stokes and Atkinson are caught behind the bar with no DRS

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By K.R. Nayar  Only a few England cricketers seem to take the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) midnight curfew seriously. Though this is greatly admired in theory, it has been ignored in practice.  England captain Ben Stokes and his teammate Gus Atkinson are in trouble following an altercation with a Saracens rugby player at a night club in the early hours on Monday. This is not the first time Stokes has been involved in a nightclub brawl - he did so in 2017 too and was fined £30,000 by the ECB.  Quite a few England cricket team players are now known for their late-night drinking scandals. This includes Jonny Bairstow, Harry Brook, Liam Plunkett, Jake Ball, and Ben Duckett. Some Australian players joining this list are David Warner, Ricky Ponting, followed by Alex Carey, Travis Head, and Nathan Lyon. All of them are great as cricketers but can get highly ‘spirited’ too. Though these brawls are mentioned as late-night bar scandals, most of these have taken pl...
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Shreyas Iyer: From Sarpanch Saab to India’s Captain Saab

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By K.R. Nayar Shreyas Iyer, the India’s new T20I captain is one who has waited for the role for a long time. Though Suryakumar Yadav is the 2026 T20 World Cup-winning captain, a leader must continue to lead from the front. Unfortunately, runs seem to have dried up for Yadav.  Iyer, who has often been ignored even as a player for the big occasions, has now climbed to the highest seat in Indian cricket. Sometimes, destiny delays but never denies. Having watched Iyer from his teenage days to the role of a captain, one always felt he had in him the qualities of a leader.  One that stands out is that he has a street-smart cricketing brain. He always displays it with a calm swagger. During the just-concluded Indian Premier League (IPL), when I had written that Iyer has nerves of steel, one of his fans commented that he also has ice in his veins. Very few players, when under pressure, convey the feeling of having seen the worse and reflect it through their body language. His co...
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