From Wimbledon to Women’s Cricket: Tahira Hameed’s Historic Legacy

Discover the inspiring story of Tahira Hameed, the trailblazer who founded women’s cricket in Pakistan and shaped a historic journey for female athletes

Tahira Hameed’s Historic Legacy (Image Source: Google)

It is being believed that at Colombo, rain deprived Pakistan of what would have been a memorable win against four-time champions England. Truth is that Pakistan Team’s participation in the World Cup itself is much more memorable and historic. Against the backdrop of a conservative society and religious sentiments in Pakistan, girls played cricket, formed a team to play international cricket without any support from PCB at that time, is no mean achievement. The present generation of Pakistan women cricketers should thank the inspiring force behind it. Unfortunately, today nobody remembers that guiding and inspiring force and her story is lost in the history pages.

On November 8, 2020, one Tahira Hameed died in Karachi. She was 85. She was one of the great women sports’ figures of Pakistan. She was the one who thought of the women’s cricket in Pakistan and provided it a structure in the mid-seventies.

She was a player but surprisingly didn’t play cricket. Even then devoted her time and energy to women cricket in Pakistan. She had sports in her blood and belonged to a sports family:

Father S.A. Hameed: He represented India in athletics in the Olympics. He was the first secretary general of the Pakistan Olympic Association.

Brother Farooq Hameed: Ex-Pakistan Test cricketer (1 Test). At one time he was considered faster than even Frank Tyson but retired at the age of 25 only. He was the first who raised the issue of improving the pension of retired Test cricketers.

Cousin Khalid Aziz: First-class cricketer who played for 18 years and was once the 12th man for Pakistan in a Test against England in 1956-57. Later on, became umpire and was on duty in 3 Tests and 7 ODIs including one match at the 1987 World Cup.

Tahira herself played in Wimbledon as well as excelled in different athletics events. So, in sports she made a name with her own achievements.

*In Punjab Olympics in 1952 bagged four gold medals in discus throw, shot put, javelin and 1500-metre cycling.

*At the Pakistan Olympics in 1952 she again won four golds in the same four events and this trend continued in the next five Games also.

Still, she saved her best for Tennis. She competed in various tennis championships abroad. It’s not that she didn’t face any family or the society restrictions but fought and made her way. This tomboy girl had father’s support who used to bring spiked shoes and track suits for her, from his foreign trips.

*Her mixed doubles partner was Khwaja Iftikhar Ahmed, who she used to call uncle. They were second at the Asian Championship in Kolkata in 1955 and the Central Championship in Allahabad in 1956.

* Her doubles partner was Parveen, and they won the Asian Tennis Championship title in Lahore in 1958 (where she also finished as the runners-up in the mixed doubles).

In 1959 history was made and Tahira Hameed and Parveen played at the Wimbledon, in singles event. Girls from Pakistan playing at Wimbledon in crisp white salwar kameez was a big news then. For their dress, they were on the front pages of the British papers. Many criticised them for breaking the fashion trends of Wimbledon, but they were proud to play in that attire.

In 1960 Tahira got married, moved to England and this stopped sports. The last event in which she participated was the National Tennis Championship in Lahore in 1960 where she won both the singles and mixed doubles event with Munir Pirzada.

In London, she got a job at the Pakistan High Commission and incidentally, also got a part-time job as a tennis coach at a high school. This kept her in touch with the sports. In England she saw girls playing cricket and this inspired her to do something for the girls in Pakistan, desiring to play cricket.

In 1978, with support of her cricket loving family, Tahira Hameed formed the Pakistan Women’s Cricket Association (PWCA) and immediately announced trials. To her surprise about 500 girls participated and a new movement started in Pakistan. Ijaz Butt who later became PCB chairman helped her and ground and kit sponsors were found. The sister-in-law of Ijaz Butt, Shirin Javed was made president of the association. It’s not that the road ahead was rosy but a revolution had started. Rest is history.

Her picture on the walls of Jinnah Stadium in Islamabad and a commemorative medal from the ICC (presented at the National Stadium, Karachi) stamps what Tahira Hameed did for women cricket in Pakistan.

For the first time, Pakistan team participated in the World Cup in 1997 and do you know what Mr Brijmohan Lall Munjal, the founder of Hero MotoCorp - principal sponsors of the 1997 World Cup, while welcoming the neighbouring country during the tournament's opening ceremony in New Delhi, had said: "Pakistan have won the World Cup just by turning up here."

Believe it the team had escaped Pakistan after being put on the Exit Control List (applicable on the criminals charged with grave crimes). That is a different story.