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

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 had dismissed Pakistan Test cricketer Mushtaq Mohammad, who was also making his debut, that made me think his age. He was such a brilliant storyteller that I felt I was with a living archive of the game.

When he is in Dubai, I ensured that his birthday is celebrated with a cake cutting ceremony in the press box. Always Test stars attended it and here is one such occasion in the presence of Geoff Boycott and Intikhab Alam. 

Qamar was close to Javed Miandad and had many stories about his heroics. He had a home in England, and many Pakistan Test stars have stayed there with him. Having reported close to 450 Test matches, he had seen it all and knew more than any other Pakistan cricket journalist. His little-known tales about cricketers always made me wait for his phone call before a Pakistan series in the UAE.

With Qamar Ahmed, Sunil Gavaskar and Pakistan journalists Shahid Hashmi and Rasheed Shakoor at the Sharjah Stadium

Qamar was born in Uttar Pradesh (UP) in 1937, and once, during a journey to Abu Dhabi, he narrated how his family was protected by an Indian  family during the riots prior to the Partition. It was touching to hear his story after he had revisited his home in UP decades later during an India-Pakistan cricket series. 

With Qamar Ahmed who used to collect autographs from players on cricket bats, mostly on request from those who read him.

Qamar’s narration of cricket history was such that it felt like he was holding my hand and I was  walking with him down memory lane. Every time he came to the UAE, or when I met him in England, he would gift me a cricket book, signed with a personal note addressed to me.

One of his many books gifted to me signed with a personal note. 

Qamar’s last message to me was on May 31, 2026 congratulating me on my blog crossing the 400,000 readership mark. We always shared our stories, and he would comment on almost every piece I wrote. I valued his views since he had witnessed many heartbreaks, as well as the miracles and joy of cricket.

Qamar Ahmed's last message to me congratualting me on my blog crossing the 400,000 readership mark 

Qamar was witness to many generations of cricketers come and go. He was passionate about collecting autographs on bats from batters who scored over 300 runs in Test cricket. Very often, he got into my car with that bat, looking more like a cricketer than a writer. He bowled left-arm spin and would often play for the journalists team during the friendly games here. Later on, he only umpired those matches.

Qamar wrote for reputed newspapers such as The Daily Telegraph, The Times, and The Guardian, and Times of India, apart from Pakistan’s Dawn, where he had a column. He was admired by all because his writing carried neither bitterness nor bias, but sheer love for the game, expressed elegantly. Whenever I walked with him past a team’s dressing room, players would often greet him by his name. Though dressing rooms were open to him, he never went there, respecting their privacy. In fact, he was privy to many stories that were not meant to be printed. His relationships were built on trust, and he was not someone to break news based on gossip.

From the back cover about him in one of his books 

As a veteran journalist, he believed that he carried a responsibility to protect the game and its players. According to him, cricket was not just his career, but his lifelong companion. And he stood by it till the end. He did not merely report the game; he preserved the soul of cricket as something sacred. 

Although the front seat in my car will miss his presence, the echoes he left behind will remain for long.