How Wasim, Waqar helped Pakistan’s Viv Richards
dubai — While Sachin Tendulkar and Brian Lara won plaudits as the two best batsmen in the 1990s with their contrasting styles -- the former with his classical technique that married destructive shotmaking and the latter with his unparalleled appetite for big innings while never losing his left-handed grace, it’s sometimes easy to overlook another batsman of their time that grabbed the bull by its horn.
And that batsman was none other than the burly Pakistani Inzamam-ul Haq.
Inzamam’s greatness didn’t lie in the numbers - even though 17 of his 25 Test centuries were match-winning efforts, an incredibly high percentage for a batsman that never really got the appreciation he deserved.
The beauty of Inzamam’s batting was in the effortless manner in which he pulled and hooked the fast bowlers.
The Sultan of Multan had so much time to play his shots that even Imran Khan hailed Inzamam as the Pakistani Viv Richards.
It was in the 1970s and 1980s that Richards decimated the fastest bowlers of his time without ever feeling the need to wear a helmet.
But now as the world is taking all sorts of precautionary measures to stop the spread of the deadly Covid-19, sports fans deprived of live action are connecting with their favourite stars on social media.
It was during one such YouTube chat with former Pakistan captain Ramiz Raja that Inzamam opened up on what made him such a great player against the best fast bowlers of his time.
“It was simple. I played Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis in the nets,” said Inzamam.
“With two of the greatest fast bowlers of all time bowling bouncers and yorkers at you at such speed, it was easy for me to play international bowlers in matches. Actually, it was easier to play opposition bowlers after playing Wasim and Waqar in the nets,” Inzamam added.
Ramiz then reminded him that no international batsman had ever hooked and pulled Wasim and Waqar as emphatically as Inzamam did in the nets.
“Actually, I never wanted to get out to them,” Inzamam smiled.
“And the reason for that was both Wasim and Waqar used to make fun of our batsmen who would get out to them in the net sessions.
“It was as though they derived more joy from getting our batsmen out in the nets than getting rival batsman out in matches.
“I didn’t want to give them the chance and so I brought my best game when they two of them came in to bowl.
“But having said that, it’s because of them that I became a very good player against fast bowling. I could not have practised against better bowlers.”