Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar has credited the legendary Pakistan skipper Imran Khan for playing a pivotal role in helping him become the first player to reach 10,000 Test runs. In March 1987, Gavaskar achieved the historic milestone during a match against Pakistan in Ahmedabad. While 14 other players have since crossed the 10,000-run mark, Gavaskar’s achievement remains unique as he was the first to do so. During a discussion on Ten Sports, former Pakistan captain Wasim Akram asked Gavaskar about his thoughts on being the first player to reach 10,000 runs.
“It’s an incredible feeling to reach 10,000 runs. When I started, I never imagined I’d achieve this milestone. I would’ve been content with 1,000 runs. I wasn’t that ambitious. And while many will surpass it, like Tenzing Norgay and Edmund Hillary are remembered as the first to climb Mount Everest, the first to reach 10,000 runs will always be remembered,” Gavaskar shared with Akram and others during the discussion.
Gavaskar revealed that it was Imran who persuaded him to continue playing, preventing him from retiring when Pakistan’s tour of India was still pending approval.
“I was able to achieve this because of the one and only Imran Khan. The year before, after the first Test in England, Imran and I went to an Italian restaurant for lunch. I told him that this series would be my last, and this was in 1986. I said I’d retire after it, but he didn’t agree. He asked me why I’d want to retire, and I said it was my decision. He replied, ‘No, no, Pakistan is coming to India.I want to defeat India with you on the field. I don’t want to beat them without you.’ I told him that Pakistan wasn’t coming, but he insisted saying, ‘The ICC meeting is next week, and you’ll hear the announcement soon.’ I said, ‘If it’s announced, I’ll keep playing, but if not, I’ll retire after this series.’ Sure enough, the announcement came, and I continued. Had I retired then, I would have had around 9,200-9,300 runs. But because of that, I made it to 10,000. There were two more matches before Pakistan came.”