Atal Bihari Vajpayee Death Anniversary: 16 August 2018 was the day when former Prime Minister of India Atal Bihari Vajpayee passed away. Today, on his sixth death anniversary, the whole country is remembering him. Vajpayee was not only a politician but also a poet, journalist and a big fan of cricket. India-Pakistan relations have not been good for a long time, but it was Atal Bihari Vajpayee who tried to bring the two countries closer using cricket.
In 2004, the then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee tried to improve relations with the neighbouring countries by calling a meeting of SAARC countries. Meanwhile, the Indian government asked Team India to tour Pakistan and the captain in those days was Sourav Ganguly. At that time, five ODIs and three Test matches were to be played between the two countries. The Indian team was going to Pakistan after 19 years and the team included excellent players like Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and Virender Sehwag.
Win not only the game but also the hearts…
Ratnakar Shetty, who was the manager of the Indian cricket team at that time, says that Prime Minister Vajpayee personally met the team and spent an hour with the team. The entire team presented a signed bat to the PM as a gift. But Atal Bihari Vajpayee was also waiting for a gift for Team India. He also gifted a bat to the Indian team, on which was written, ‘Win not only the game but also the hearts. Best wishes.’
Let us remind you that the ODI series was very exciting, in which India won 3-2. Former team manager Ratnakar Shetty says that before the tour he had gone to Pakistan to assess the security arrangements. Pakistani people were so impressed with Vajpayee that people were carrying his posters and shouting slogans in support of Vajpayee.
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