Austral-Asia Cup
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| Administrator | Sharjah Cricket Association &International Cricket Council |
|---|---|
| Format | One Day International |
| First edition | 1986 |
| Latest edition | 1994 |
| Tournament format | Round-robinandKnock Out |
| Number of teams | 6 per tournament |
| Current champion |  Pakistan(3rd title) |
| Most successful | Pakistan(3 titles) |
| Most runs |  Mohammad Azharuddin(371) |
| Most wickets | Wasim Akram(18) |
TheAustral-Asia Cupwas aOne Day Internationalcricket tournament held atSharjah,United Arab Emirates.
The Arab cricketer, enthusiast and millionaire Abdur Rahman Bukhathir brought cricket initially to Sharjah in the mid-1980s and he masterminded a one-day tournament involvingAsiaandAustralasia's main cricketing nations –Australia,India,New Zealand,PakistanandSri Lanka.
First edition 1986
[edit]- Won byPakistan
The first tournament was held at Sharjah in April 1986. India beat New Zealand and Pakistan beat Australia in the first round. Sri Lanka as Asia Cup winners got a bye to the semi-final, where they lost to India. New Zealand fielding a weakened team were bowled all out for 64 in the other semi.Abdul Qadirtook 4–9 in 10 overs.
Pakistan and India met in the final in front of a capacity crowd of 20,000. India scored 245–7 withSunil Gavaskartop-scoring with 92. Pakistan need 90 to win of the last ten overs.Javed Miandadheld the innings together. In a tense finale, the last over bowled byChetan Sharmabegan with 11 runs required. During the over two wickets fell and with Pakistan needing 4 runs and India one final wicket from the last ball. Chetan Sharma's intended yorker became a full toss which was dispatched into crowds by Javed for a six. Pakistan finished on 248–9 with Javed finishing on 116 not out. It is still considered one of the most historic moments in one-day cricket history and Javed became a Pakistani national hero.
Second edition 1990
[edit]- Won byPakistan
The second tournament took place in April 1990 at Sharjah withBangladeshjoining in. The six teams were split into 2 groups:
Group A:Australia, New Zealand and Bangladesh
Group B:India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
With Bangladesh and India falling by the wayside, Australia beat Sri Lanka in the first semi-final withSimon O'Donnellhitting a then world record 50 in 18 balls. Pakistan again bowled New Zealand out for less than 100 to go through to the final. During the tournamentWaqar Younistook 4 wickets in an innings three successive times: 4–42, 6–26 and 5–20.
Pakistan scored 266–7 in the final and Australia's 10 match winning streak was brought to an end byWasim Akram.He ended their innings with ahat-trick.Australia making 230-All Out.
Third edition 1994
[edit]- Won byPakistan
TheUnited Arab Emirates(UAE) replaced Bangladesh as the sixth team in the tournament, with the UAE playing their first everOne Day Internationalmatch. Again there were two groups of three teams.
Group A:India, Pakistan, United Arab Emirates
Group B:Australia, New Zealand and Sri Lanka.
The UAE and Sri Lanka did not make the semis. India defeated Australia in the first semi-final and this time Pakistan scored 328–2 with a then world record stand for the 2nd wicket betweenAamer Sohail(134) andInzamam-ul-Haq(137 not out) of 263 against New Zealand and won by 62 runs.
This set up the final most people wanted: India v Pakistan. Pakistan made 250 for 6Aamer Sohailtop scoring with 69 and India were bowled all out for 211. Pakistan had a hat-trick of Austral-Asia Cup triumphs.
Demise
[edit]Due to the busy international fixture schedule, the Austral-Asia Cup hasn't been contested since 1994.