One of the biggest rivalry in world cricket is between India and Pakistan. When the two nation clashes on the field of cricket, there is always immense popularity in and around the world.
However, there was a time when some of the players represented both the nation at the international level.
This happened during the time of Indian partition in 1947 when numerous cricketers moved from India to Pakistan due to its creation. There have only been three cricketers in the history of cricket to officially play Test cricket for both India and Pakistan.
Here is a list of these three cricketers and their special stories.
3 Cricketers Who Played for Both India and Pakistan
| Player Name | Matches for India | Matches for Pakistan | Key Achievement |
| Abdul Hafeez Kardar | 3 | 23 | Captained Pakistan to their first Test win against India |
| Gul Mohammad | 8 | 1 | Played for India against Pakistan in 1952 |
| Amir Elahi | 1 | 5 | Played for Pakistan at the age of 44 |
Abdul Hafeez Kardar
Image Source: PA Photos
Abdul Hafeez Kardar is one of the influential cricketers of Pakistan. He is one of those cricketers who represented India first during India's tour to England in 1946. He played in three Test matches for India before the partition of the sub-continent. After that, he moved to Pakistan and lead its inaugural Test team in the year 1952.
In fact, Pakistan registered their maiden Test win against India under the captaincy of Kardar, later on, he even registered victory against major test playing nations of the world under him. He played 23 Tests for Pakistan and scored 927 runs at the end of his international career. He scored 6,832 runs in first class cricket and the father of Pakistan cricket, as he is commonly known as, indeed left a legacy.
Gul Mohammad
Image Source: Wisden
Another rare case in cricket history where one could represent both India and Pakistan is Gul Mohammad.
A stylish left-hand bat who represented India in eight Test matches between 1946 and 1955, and the most important matches against tough oppositions like Australia and West Indies came in the aforesaid period. One of the highlights of Gul Mohammad's career was the India-Pakistan match of 1952, when he represented India.
Later on, Gul Mohammad moved to Pakistan and acquired Pakistani citizenship in 1956 and later in 1956, was picked to play one Test match for Pakistan against Australia in Karachi. This made Gul Mohammad one of those very few players who represented both India and Pakistan. The Pakistani later retired with 205 runs in Test cricket, while having amassed 5,614 runs in 118 first class matches.
Amir Elahi
Image Source: PCB
Another of the few in Cricket to represent both India and Pakistan, Amir Elahi was an all rounder and an excellent leg spinner.
His Test career began playing against Australia for India in 1947, pre partition. Post creation of Pakistan he was one of the few who moved across the border to play for Pakistan and in 1952 played five Tests for Pakistan on their tour of India.
One of the best achievements by Amir Elahi was to play for Pakistan at the age of 44 and continued to play domestic cricket for years after that. He picked up over 520 wickets combined in first class and international cricket.
The three players continue to form part of a unique part of cricket history with their careers shaped by a defining political movement in South Asia that also continues to impact relations between India and Pakistan.