Shoaib Akhtar was one of the fastest bowlers in the history of
international cricket and played for the Pakistan National Cricket Team.
He has been involved in several controversies during his career, often
accused of not being a team player. Akhtar was sent home during the Test
match series in Australia in 2005 for alleged poor attitude. A year
later, he was embroiled in a drug scandal after testing positive to a
banned substance. However, the ban imposed on him was lifted on court
appeal. In September 2007, Akhtar was banned for an indefinite period
for his fight with Pakistan team mate and fast bowler Mohammad Asif.On 1 April 2008, Akhtar was banned for five years for publicly criticizing the Pakistan Cricket Board. In October 2008, the Lahore High Court
in Pakistan suspended the five year ban and Akhtar was selected in the
15-man squad for the Twenty20 Quadrangular Tournament in Canada. Pakistani judge, Rana Bhagwandas stated once that, Akhtar is a legend of Pakistan cricket. He retired from international cricket after the 2011 World Cup.Akhtar was born at Morgah, a small town near Rawalpindi, Punjab in Pakistan. His father was a plant operator in Attock Oil Refinery, Morgah. Akhtar started his studies at Elliott High School, Morgah and then took admission in the Asghar Mall College, Rawalpindi. Akhtar's run of impressive performances started in the 1990s. In
1999, during a pre-World Cup series against India, he rose to
prominence. It was followed by outstanding bowling performances in Sharjah and later in 1999 Cricket World Cup.
His most significant performance was in India in 1999 when he captured
eight wickets in the Asian Test championship match at Calcutta –
including the wickets of Indian batsman Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid
off successive deliveries. This was Akhtar's first encounter with
Sachin Tendulkar, in which Akthar bowled him off the first delivery he
delivered to the batsman.In 2002, he was selected for the Pakistan team against Australia and achieved success. However he performed poorly during the 2003 Cricket World Cup
and after the tournament he was dropped from the Pakistan squad. He was
selected back into the Pakistan squad in the 2004 Test match series
against New Zealand, but struggled in a losing Test series against India
in 2004. The series ended with a controversy when he left the field
citing an injury leading to suspicions by former Pakistan captain, Inzamam-ul-Haq, about his commitment to the team. As a result, his relationship with Inzamam-ul-Haq and former Pakistan coach Bob Woolmer deteriorated. A medical panel was set up by the Pakistan Cricket Board to investigate the nature of his injury, however Pakistan officials dispelled all suspicions.
In 2005, Akhtar regained his reputation as a fast bowler for his side. Playing in a three Test home series against England, he made a series of impressive bowling performances. His effective use of slower deliveries proved to be unplayable by the English batsmen. Akhtar emerged as the highest wicket taker of the series with seventeen wickets. His comeback was also remarkable as prior to his return, he had been criticized from all corners-such as by the Worcestershire chairman John Elliot for his celebrity attitude and lack of commitment to team. His performance was also acknowledged by the English captain Michael Vaughan, who remarked "I thought he (Shoaib) was a big difference between the two teams".He is also known as the only bowler ever to break the 100 mph barrier in cricket bowling history, with a delivery of 100.2 mph, and this delivery at stands as the fastest recorded to date. Akhtar has played for three English county cricket clubs, including Somerset in 2001, Durham in 2003 and 2004 and Worcestershire in 2005. He did achieve his moments of success, such as taking 5 wickets for 35 runs for Durham against Somerset in the National League in 2003 and claiming 6 wickets for 16 runs in the same competition for Worcestershire against Glamorgan two years later, but he suffered from fitness problems, as well as a perception that he was less than interested in his task. This was particularly the case at Worcestershire: chairman John Elliott said "Players like that are no good to our club. In fact, Akhtar has been no good for any club he's been at. He's a superstar and just does what he wants."Akhtar made a successful return to cricket in his first game in the Indian Premier League, playing for the Kolkata Knight Riders against the Delhi Daredevils. Defending a low score of 133 runs, Akhtar took four top order wickets which ultimately led to the Daredevils being restricted to 110 runs. He ended with figures of 4 wickets for 11 runs from three overs, a performance which earned him the player of the match award. Akhtar denied that he had any point to prove with his performance, stating, "I just wanted to win the game." Knight Riders' captain Sourav Ganguly also acknowledged Akhtar's performance, "He came to the country with lots [of things] happening behind him...But he showed a lot of character." It has been widely reported that the Knight Riders have released Akhtar from his contract due to his injury history but the Knight Riders' officials have denied these reports and said they are still in talks with the fast bowler.He has also played for Cyclones of Chittagong in Bangladesh's NCL T20 Bangladesh.
In 2005, Akhtar regained his reputation as a fast bowler for his side. Playing in a three Test home series against England, he made a series of impressive bowling performances. His effective use of slower deliveries proved to be unplayable by the English batsmen. Akhtar emerged as the highest wicket taker of the series with seventeen wickets. His comeback was also remarkable as prior to his return, he had been criticized from all corners-such as by the Worcestershire chairman John Elliot for his celebrity attitude and lack of commitment to team. His performance was also acknowledged by the English captain Michael Vaughan, who remarked "I thought he (Shoaib) was a big difference between the two teams".He is also known as the only bowler ever to break the 100 mph barrier in cricket bowling history, with a delivery of 100.2 mph, and this delivery at stands as the fastest recorded to date. Akhtar has played for three English county cricket clubs, including Somerset in 2001, Durham in 2003 and 2004 and Worcestershire in 2005. He did achieve his moments of success, such as taking 5 wickets for 35 runs for Durham against Somerset in the National League in 2003 and claiming 6 wickets for 16 runs in the same competition for Worcestershire against Glamorgan two years later, but he suffered from fitness problems, as well as a perception that he was less than interested in his task. This was particularly the case at Worcestershire: chairman John Elliott said "Players like that are no good to our club. In fact, Akhtar has been no good for any club he's been at. He's a superstar and just does what he wants."Akhtar made a successful return to cricket in his first game in the Indian Premier League, playing for the Kolkata Knight Riders against the Delhi Daredevils. Defending a low score of 133 runs, Akhtar took four top order wickets which ultimately led to the Daredevils being restricted to 110 runs. He ended with figures of 4 wickets for 11 runs from three overs, a performance which earned him the player of the match award. Akhtar denied that he had any point to prove with his performance, stating, "I just wanted to win the game." Knight Riders' captain Sourav Ganguly also acknowledged Akhtar's performance, "He came to the country with lots [of things] happening behind him...But he showed a lot of character." It has been widely reported that the Knight Riders have released Akhtar from his contract due to his injury history but the Knight Riders' officials have denied these reports and said they are still in talks with the fast bowler.He has also played for Cyclones of Chittagong in Bangladesh's NCL T20 Bangladesh.
No comments:
Post a Comment