Written by: Muhammad Suhayb
Posted on: February 21, 2023 | 
| 中文
Wasim Akram
Wasim Akram, the former Pakistan captain and one of the greatest fast bowlers in cricket, is amongst the top players produced by Pakistan. He has a huge following of cricket fans and those who have witnessed his miraculous rise as a cricketer, place him amongst the legends of the game. However, those fans who began following the game in the mid-90s, still believe that Wasim Akram was behind the controversies that rocked cricket in the 1990s. While, Sultan: A Memoir, is an authentic autobiography, Wasim Akram has responded to all those who have accused him without any evidence.
Since retiring in 2003, Wasim Akram has rarely addressed the allegations leveled against him by the press or fellow players. Two decades after being away from the field, Wasim, Swing ka Sultan, clearly bowls out his opponents and clarifies the match-fixing charges he faced at the end of his career.
Written by the famous writer on cricket, Australia’s Gideon Haigh, the book traces fifty-six years of Wasim Akram’s life. Gideon has also authored the autobiography of Australian leg spinner Shane Warne, and knows how to sum up the achievements of the protagonists and knows how to bring out the player’s personality. The surprisingly honest memoir reveals a great deal about Wasim, who talks about his sudden rise to stardom, his contribution to the game, his county stint at Lancashire as well as the famous World Cup win in Melbourne in 1992.
Wasim Akram and Imran Khan
As for relations with his team-mates, Wasim acknowledges his special bond with Imran Khan, praised the role of Javed Miandad as a captain in shaping up his career, while revealing his personal dislike for characters like Ramiz Raja, Salim Malik and Amir Sohail. It was Wasim who influenced Imran Khan to pick the rookie, Waqar Younis, for international matches. Waqar Younis and Wasim terrorized English players in the summer of 1992, however, after the infamous players’ revolt against Wasim Akram, they became rivals. Wasim also elaborates on his role in discovering the talent of Shahid Afridi, who was recalled as Mushtaq Ahmed’s replacement, and takes credit for nurturing Rawalpindi Express Shoaib Akhtar.
Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis
On the personal side, the first bowler to get five hundred wickets in ODIs, was open about the match-fixing allegations, clashes with his team-mates, the Justice Qayyum report, the Grenada incident of 1993 where four of the Pakistan team members were arrested for smoking marijuana, and his addiction to cocaine. After retirement, Wasim turned to coaching with stints in Indian Premier League, became a full-time commentator, but his tight schedule left him with little time from his family.
Wasim Akram and Shaniera with Akram's parents
Full of anecdotes, Wasim not only opens up about the infamous Bangalore Quarter final of the 1996 World Cup, but also about the other injuries that he suffered from time to time. The year 1999 was an important one for Wasim Akram as it came soon after the Nawaz-Vajpyee meeting in Lahore. The 1998/99 tour started on a sour note when the pitch at Delhi’s Feroz Shah Kotla Ground was dug up by protestors. Chennai test ended in a thriller, where Pakistan team completed a victory lap after winning by a whisker. It was Anil Kumble who alone took all ten wickets in Delhi, squaring the series. The men in green, however, bounced back and won two more tests as part of the Asian Test Championship, along with the tri-nation ODI tournament. On the way to win the inaugural Asian Test Championship, Wasim managed to take 2 hat tricks in successive tests, becoming the only bowlers with two hat tricks in both formats of the game.
One-year old Wasim Akram
On his previous tour to India ten years earlier, Wasim recalls the hastily arranged Nehru Cup. Although Pakistan won the title when Wasim hit a six on the penultimate delivery of the tournament, the tight schedule and irregular travelling made it difficult to be fit before a match.
Wasim Akram also opens up about the 1999 World Cup, where he explains what went wrong in detail. He didn’t spare the politicians, especially the ruling party and the PCB officials, who interfered repeatedly, once the team reached the Super Six stage. Even the coach and his assistant had to sit outside the dressing room in the finals, which was occupied by politicians and officials.
Akram with Shaniera and his kids
Carrying quotes from the star players of the ‘90s, who were tormented by Wasim’s lethal deliveries, the book also has tips and tactics revealed by the man who took 414 test wickets. Wasim reveals how he indicated to the wicket keeper, Moin Khan, that he would be bowling a no-ball, or what his strategy was before dismissing Alan Lamb or Chris Lewis in the World Cup final. Wasim Akram discusses how he was accepted as an overseas player at Lancashire and his rivalries with the greatest batsmen; the book has the drama and the controversies that dogged him over the years.
Reading the book is like watching Wasim Akram bowl against the odds. His memoir is candid and open, rather than the usual self-congratulatory ones associated with cricketers from the sub-continent.
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