5 Unforgettable Sledging Moments in Cricket History

Cricket, at its intense best, finds a way to get under anyone’s skin, be it the followers of the game or the players who play it. When it happens on the field, things get nasty. Sometimes, too nasty.

It’s a game in which thrill, passion, and emotion remain unparalleled. Cricket is incomplete without these. Through the course of time, sledging, too, has become an integral part of this beautiful game.

No one knows about the exact origin of the term ‘sledging’. Players use it often to intimidate the opposition while some also criticize it. Despite all that, it continues to find relevance in modern-day cricket.

Here’s a list of 5 epic sledging incidents in cricket history

1. Hit me if you can! (Sachin Tendulkar and Abdul Qadir)

Imagine a 16-year old teenager batsman in his first-ever outing in limited-overs international cricket, up against a 34-year-old leg spinner, the best of his generation and at the peak of his prowess. What followed was, if not history, was the arrival of India’s best ever. The batsman was Sachin Tendulkar and the bowler, Abdul Qadir.

The first match of the India and Pakistan ODI series in 1989-90 was scheduled on 15th of December at Peshawar. Due to poor light, the official match was cancelled. For the sake of the crowd gathered in the stadium, both the countries decided to play a 20-over exhibition match. Pakistan batted first and made 157.

In reply, when Sachin Tendulkar hit Mushtaq Ahmad for two sixes in an over, Abdul Qadir came to him and said, “Bachchon ko kyon mar rahe ho? Hamein bhi maar dikhao” (“Why are you only hitting the kid? Hit me too.”) This charged up with the debutant and Abdul Qadir’s next over read: 6, 0, 4, 6, 6, 6. Unfortunately, India fell short of the target by a mere 4 runs.