Pakistan’s legendary pacer Wasim Akram is acknowledged as one of the greatest bowlers of all time. With his swing, seam, and extreme pace Akram horrified all the batters he bowled to. However, there was one batsman who challenged the left-arm fast bowler, and Akram recently revealed the name of that player.
During a panel discussion at Fox Cricket, which featured former England skipper Michael Vaughan as well, Akram was asked to name the toughest batsman he has bowled to during his career. Many would’ve expected him to call the likes of Brian Lara or Sachin Tendulkar, but Akram here bowled a googly.
The 53-year old said: “Very difficult question to answer. But, I have to pick one guy it has to be Martin Crowe. The reason was he got runs against us. He was always on the front foot. As a bowler, we were left frustrated, and then we used to bowl short. That’s what he wanted us to do. Nobody knew what reverse swing was back then. That’s why I will say.”
.@wasimakramlive on who are the best batsmen he's bowled to. pic.twitter.com/OcGrsG7jB4
— Fox Cricket (@FoxCricket) December 3, 2019
Martin Crowe was a splendid batsman. He averaged 45-plus in the longest format of the game and made more than 5000 runs.
The former Kiwi skipper scored 17 tons and 18 fifties in Test cricket, with 299 being his highest score. Crowe also played 143 ODIs and made more than 4700 runs with a decent average of 38.5.
The reason why Pakistani speedster hasn’t forgotten Crowe is that the New Zealander had a brilliant average (over 50) against him.
Wasim Akram was the first bowler to claim 500 wickets in ODI cricket history. In his international career, the left-armer took 916 wickets (414 in Tests and 502 in ODIs) in 460 matches (104 Tests and 356 ODIs). He was one of the most consistent bowlers to have ever played the game.
