by Abhishek Mukherjee

Cowdrey brought his men to a 3-Test series in a turbulent Pakistan in 1968-69. This was no ordinary tour. MCC started their tour with Ceylon, but news of violence in Pakistan reached them every day.

They lay low, and when they reached Pakistan, they realised that the itinerary had been drawn in haste. Ayub Khan had wanted to regain his hold over the country. He was keen on having cricket as a way to regain his popularity.

Unfortunately, the planning was too amateurish. For example, two matches were supposed to be played at Bahawalpur and Lyallpur on consecutive days. Google Maps estimates the distance between the cities as 312 km.

The first match was largely uneventful, but what was important was that it lasted its entire duration. This meant there was little time for the English cricketers to travel, let alone rest. They had to get up at the crack of dawn, rush to the airport, board a chartered flight, and rush to the ground. They reached an hour and a half late.

Now this was a strong opposition, one that featured Hanif Mohammad, Saeed Ahmed, Nasim-ul-Ghani, Mohammad Ilyas, Farooq Hameed, and a teenager called Wasim Raja.

Saeed walked out in his blazers – but Cowdrey was nowhere to be seen. The crowd grew impatient. Naturally, people were sent to investigate the cause of the delay.

Cowdrey refused to take field before he had a cup of tea. Nothing could make him alter his decision. Absolutely nothing. The hectic schedule had perhaps taken its toll.

"No English side ever started a game of cricket without first having a cup of tea."

The match started well over two hours after scheduled time.