Atal Bihari Vajpayee: Today is the sixth death anniversary of India’s former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. His love for cricket was not hidden from anyone
Atal Bihari Vajpayee Death Anniversary: 16 August, 2018 was the day when India’s former Prime Minister 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 by using cricket.
In the year 2004, the then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee tried to improve relations with his neighboring countries by calling a meeting of SAARC countries. Meanwhile, the Indian government asked Team India to tour Pakistan and in those days the captain 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 great players like Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and Virender Sehwag.
Win not only the game, but also hearts…
Ratnakar Shetty, who was the manager of the Indian cricket team at that time, tells 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 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 tells that before the tour, he went to Pakistan to assess the security arrangements. Pakistani people were so impressed with Vajpayee that people were carrying his poster and shouting slogans in support of Vajpayee.
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