By IANS,
Mumbai: Former Pakistan captain Wasim Akram Saturday rejected allegations that he wanted to ruin the career of his compatriot Shoaib Akhtar and criticised the maverick bowler for trying to sell his autobiography ‘Controversially Yours’ by making sensational claims against Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid.
In his book, Shoaib claimed that Tendulkar and Dravid were not good finishers. The Rawalpindi Express also went a step ahead saying that Tendulkar was uncomfortable with his pace in the Faisalabad Test in 2006.
Akram, recalling Tendulkar’s debut series in Pakistan, said: “I remember one of Sachin’s knocks in the Sialkot Test. It was the fourth Test and the wicket had lot of grass, I was 22 and Waqar was 19 and we were very fast. Waqar hit him on his chin and he came back after taking treatment and scored a 50. If a 16-year-old can’t be scared, I don’t think any batsman can be scared. It hardly matters what Shoaib says.
Akram said Shoaib was a controversial character on and off the field.
“Whatever the Pakistan Cricket Board says, I am with them. He was a problem when he was in the team and he is a problem when he is out of the team,” Akram said.
“He knows, I know and the world knows that he was himself responsible for destroying his career. There is a lot to talk but I don’t want to humiliate him. There is an unwritten code among players that some facts should not be revealed before the media. You guys (media) will ensure that his book is a bestseller,” he said.
Meanwhile, on Indian cricket, Akram said that Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s men should be well prepared to play on fast and bouncy wickets in Australia later this year.
“The Australia tour will be challenging for India and they should expect bouncy wickets,” he said.
Akram also said that cricket ties between India and Pakistan should be resumed again.
“I am in favour of sporting ties between India and Pakistan. If players of these countries do well against each other, they can do well against anyone,” he said.