Sunday, April 17 2005 10:42 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

New Delhi: Indo-Pak cricket diplomacy today (Apr 17, 2005) reached its high point with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and President Pervez Musharraf coming together to watch a one-day international in New Delhi.

It was a historic occasion when the leaders of the two nations shook hands with both the teams at the start of the series-deciding match at the Ferozeshah Kotla.

Clad in a grey suit, Musharraf looked relaxed and was all smiles as he expressed his best wishes to the players and the officials.

Musharraf, who had hosted the teams a party during India's visit to the neighbouring nation last year (2004), then saluted the capacity crowd who responded with a roaring cheer.

Singh, in traditional Punjabi dress, was accompanied by Arun Jaitley, Delhi District Cricket Association (DDCA) President and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader, Ranbir Singh Mahendra, Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) president, Rajeev Shukla, BCCI vice-president, and Shaharyar Khan, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman.

It was the second time a Pakistani leader had come to India to watch an international cricket match between the two teams.In 1987, late Zia ul Haq was present at a Test match in Jaipur.

Earlier, speaking to reporters at the hotel before leaving for the venue, Musharraf refused to predict the outcome of the match.

"Pata nahi. Khel mein result niklega, dekhne se result nahi niklega ("I don't know. In a game there is a result. You don't get a result by seeing a match.")