In the beginning, nobody could believe that cricket could be played in a place totally naive to the requirement of the game.
However, with concerted efforts and determination of some local business tycoons, who had developed a liking for the game during their stay in Karachi and Mumbai, Sharjah became synonymous with cricket and the locals were proud of saying "cricket and Sharjah go together."
But for the last few years, it seems the tiny Gulf state has gone into oblivion and the Sharjah Cricket Stadium is deserted due to heavy schedule of the International Cricket Council (ICC) and non-availability of teams for the two tournaments in a year.
Cricket-starved expatriates from Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh are eagerly waiting for the revival of Sharjah Cup, which has been discontinued not only because of the ICC's heavy schedule, but also other reasons.
UNIQUE EXPERIMENT: However, the introduction of the game was a unique experiment and the credit for doing this miracle goes to none other than Abdurrehman Bukhatir. who not only thought on different lines but also made his dreams come true.
A club-level cricketer himself, Bukhatir, during his school and college days in Karachi, had developed friendship with Pakistan's former captain Asif Iqbal and some First Class cricketers of Karachi.
Once he made up his mind, he discussed his plans with Asif Iqbal and some other business magnates of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) like Radha Abbas and Falak Naz, who were also educated in Karachi and Bombay and had a liking for the game.
Besides, a former official of Karachi Cricket Association (KCA) M. S. Bhagat, also helped him in his plans to bring cricket to the Sheikdom.
Encouraged by their opinions, Bukhatir took the "Herculean" task of making Sharjah a cricket venue and the day came when Sharjah and cricket became synonymous.
He not only introduced cricket to the non-cricketing people of Sharjah but also perfected their interest in the game to the extent that today they seem entangled in the game more than any other recreational activity.
Cricket in Sharjah is being played with a difference. The way the cricket tournaments are held there and shown on TV added a rare touch of novelty to cricket and attracted large crowds not only onto the grounds but also before the TV sets.
Yesterday Sharjah was an unknown place with regard to cricket. Now it has the honour of being a host to a series of international cricket matches and tournaments. Every team of the world was eager to play at this ground as playing here has special appeal for the players from Pakistan, India and Sri Lanka to play before their fans.
Besides organising the tournaments, the CBFS has also excelled in providing financial benefits four cricketers - two current and two former players -- each from Pakistan and India.
The selection of beneficiaries was left to both Pakistan and Indian cricket boards.
PAKISTAN-INDIA MATCHES: The matches between Pakistan and India attracted record crowds at Sharjah Cricket Stadium.
The first Pakistan-India matches were played in 1981-1982 between Pakistan and India at a makeshift stadium. The match attracted large crowd.
While the Pakistan team was led by Intikhab Alam, the India squad was captained by Sunil Gavaskar.
Encouraged by the success of the match, Bukhatir has decided to make it a regular feature and announced the holding of tournament twice a year.
Since emotions run high in the stands and streets when the rivals clash on the field in March-April and September-October events, the Sharjah administration too got involved in the extravaganza and face the huge challenge of maintaining peace.
After getting recognition at international level, Bukhatir further modified his plans to attend the 1983 Asian Cricket Council (ACC) conference and offered to host the Asia Cup in Sharjah.
The idea was accepted and the first Asia Cup was organised in Sharjah in 1983-84 in which Pakistan, India and Sri Lanka participated. With the hosting of this tournament, Sharjah became the world cricket centre.
From 1984 till 2003, no less than 198 matches were played in 33 tournaments in Sharjah. This is certainly a record, as none of the cricket ground has hosted such a big number on One-day Internationals (ODIs).
Pakistan participated in 108 matches, winning 74, losing 33, while one was ended in a tie.
Out of 33 tournaments, Pakistan were the finalists in 29 tournaments, winning 16, while they were runners-up in seven tournaments.
India have participated only in seven tournaments. As far as the winning record is concerned, South Africa have the best record by winning all the five matches they played on this ground.
Pakistan, who are next to South Africa, also have the honour of winning tournament after tournament in Sharjah for five consecutive years.
On the other hand, India have won only one tournament in 1987-88 in which Pakistan did not participate.
HISTORIC EVENT: The 1985-86 Australasia Cup was a historic and unforgettable event for Pakistan, who won the tournament when batting maestro Javed Miandad hit a mighty six on the last ball of the tournament. The sixer turned Pakistan's definite defeat into an unbelievable victory.
With the loss of that match, India went into oblivion and faced a series of defeats. They could not win a single tournament for the next 10 years in Sharjah.
Frustrated by their defeats, they started levelling allegations against Sharjah cricket officials for being biased to them.
It was in 1994-95, when India regained the title of Asia Cup. After that India did not participate regularly in the Sharjah tournaments.
In 1995-96, India were defeated by South Africa in the final of the Sharjah Cup.
In December 1996, India once again participated in Sharjah Cup tournament, but were not in a position of giving tough fight to any team as they were in the process of making.
HUNTING GROUND: Sharjah Stadium was rightly described as "hunting ground" for Pakistan where the players faced no hurdles in defeating any team. Past records show that Pakistan have shown a home-ground-like performance on Sharjah cricket ground.
Be it Javed Miandad, Saeed Anwar, Salim Malik, Basit Ali, Shahid Afridi, all-rounders Imran Khan, Wasim Akram and Waqar Younus, they have never disappointed their fans.
Pakistani batsman have a very brilliant record on this ground and have done wonders. While the batsmen scored centuries and fifties, the bowlers performed hat-tricks.
Saeed Anwer has scored 1371 runs in 33 matches, Inzamam-ul-Hag 1044 runs with the rate of 47.45, Aamir Suhail has two centuries to his name, scoring 942 runs. However, Ijaz Ahmed had not been successful on this ground, but he had good batting record against India.
Basit Ali had the honour to score fastest century - 127 not out in 67 balls - against West Indies on November 5, 1993.
Wasim Akram has two hat-tricks to his name, securing 88 wickets, followed by Waqar Younus with 70 wickets, Mushtaq Ahmed 46 wickets. Medium pacer Aqib Javed too had impressive bowling record at the ground.
FLOODLIGHT TOURNAMENTS: With the success of day tournaments, the CBFS moved ahead and announced holding of the competitions under floodlights.
Since Sharjah is a sandy area, so there were chances of hardships in playing under floodlight as has been the case in Lahore.
Although the organisers were aware of the fitness problems, they, however, were optimistic about the success of idea and introduced the night cricket in December 1997, adding a new leaf to the books of cricket record.
Shariah has also the honour of hosting Pakistan's two home Test series against Australia and West Indies. While the series against West Indies was played in 2001-02, the series against Australia was held in 2002-03.
However, with a brilliant success record of holding a number of tournaments, there is a complete lull in international cricket activities in Sharjah. It is hoped the CBFS officials will announce restoration of the tournaments before the cricket fans remember Sharjah as a former cricket venue with a difference.