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Wasim had better PR? or was he actually better than Waqar?
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Wasim had better PR? or was he actually better than Waqar?
Quite simple really.
Wasim Akram won Pakistan the 92 WC. Waqar's absence in the tournament was actually a blessing in disguise as he was a bottler on the big stage as evident by his record against Australia and India, who had the 2 best batting line-ups during his time. Wasim on the other hand performed very well against both sides.
His records in away tests played in Australia and India was awful and he choked against them in the World Cup matches. When the stakes were high, the more he choked and as result the more that Pakistan suffered.
His understanding of cricket has always been substandard and that can be reflected by how he fared during his multiple stints as Head and/or Bowling Coach.
He was not a likeable individual either. He was instructing Wasim to get out to prevent Kumble getting a 10fer. He deliberately bowled beamers at Symonds during the 2003 WC match and has also fallen out with many players. He confessed that he was to blame for why him and Wasim never got on.
He had 2 good stages during his career. First was during the 80s up until the 92 England WC tour before he got injured and just before the end of his career when he mastered the art of conventional swing. It took him a while because he was a one trick pony. He relied on reverse swing via ball tampering. Without it he was just an above average/decent bowler i.e. not quite world class.
Wasim Akram had all the ingredients and utilised all of these to become one greatest fast bowlers of all-time.
Quite simple really.
Wasim Akram won Pakistan the 92 WC. Waqar's absence in the tournament was actually a blessing in disguise as he was a bottler on the big stage as evident by his record against Australia and India, who had the 2 best batting line-ups during his time. Wasim on the other hand performed very well against both sides.
His records in away tests played in Australia and India was awful and he choked against them in the World Cup matches. When the stakes were high, the more he choked and as result the more that Pakistan suffered.
His understanding of cricket has always been substandard and that can be reflected by how he fared during his multiple stints as Head and/or Bowling Coach.
He was not a likeable individual either. He was instructing Wasim to get out to prevent Kumble getting a 10fer. He deliberately bowled beamers at Symonds during the 2003 WC match and has also fallen out with many players. He confessed that he was to blame for why him and Wasim never got on.
He had 2 good stages during his career. First was during the 80s up until the 92 England WC tour before he got injured and just before the end of his career when he mastered the art of conventional swing. It took him a while because he was a one trick pony. He relied on reverse swing via ball tampering. Without it he was just an above average/decent bowler i.e. not quite world class.
Wasim Akram had all the ingredients and utilised all of these to become one greatest fast bowlers of all-time.
Quite simple really.
Wasim Akram won Pakistan the 92 WC. Waqar's absence in the tournament was actually a blessing in disguise as he was a bottler on the big stage as evident by his record against Australia and India, who had the 2 best batting line-ups during his time. Wasim on the other hand performed very well against both sides.
His records in away tests played in Australia and India was awful and he choked against them in the World Cup matches. When the stakes were high, the more he choked and as result the more that Pakistan suffered.
His understanding of cricket has always been substandard and that can be reflected by how he fared during his multiple stints as Head and/or Bowling Coach.
He was not a likeable individual either. He was instructing Wasim to get out to prevent Kumble getting a 10fer. He deliberately bowled beamers at Symonds during the 2003 WC match and has also fallen out with many players. He confessed that he was to blame for why him and Wasim never got on.
He had 2 good stages during his career. First was during the 80s up until the 92 England WC tour before he got injured and just before the end of his career when he mastered the art of conventional swing. It took him a while because he was a one trick pony. He relied on reverse swing via ball tampering. Without it he was just an above average/decent bowler i.e. not quite world class.
Wasim Akram had all the ingredients and utilised all of these to become one greatest fast bowlers of all-time.
I stopped reading after the first paragraph.
Look at his strike rate, look at it again, then look at it one more time.
I stopped reading after the first paragraph.
Look at his strike rate, look at it again, then look at it one more time.
Who cares if you read or stop reading?
Is 300 all out in 50 overs worse or is 350 all out in 60 overs worse?
At the end of the day, the runs scored matters, thats why Avg is universally considered the gold standard gauging performance.
Oh dear - simplistic view of the world.
Usual baby argument about india and Australia. India of the early 90s was not a great batting line up in any case. Waqar played vs India in 1989 - in his first series before his peak. - and then 1999 well after his peak. So you cant judge peak Waqar vs India. Australia he played against in 1989, 1994 (two 4-fers in khi which Pakistan won). Then he played immediately after his second serious back injury in 1996 - took him a couple of tests to get going and then cleaned the tail in the final match. His next test was well after his peak in 1999 and even then he had a pretty good game in Hobart.
So stop this silly nerdy (I get my stats from cricinfo without any context stuff).
And the ball tampering stuff has been addressed to death over here.
Where are our Pakistan fans here that allow these ridiculous new age opinions to stick.
Dumbest thing I've probably ever read on PP.
Australia were the best team in the 90s and 2000s. Doesn't matter what you think of India's batting line up, what matters is that they have always been Pakistan's biggest rival.
If you can't deliver in their backyard and let them destroy you in World Cup matches then it shows that Waqar failed when the stakes were high.
In tests, he averaged 40 in Australia and well over 70 in India. He choked in crucial World cup matches including the 1996 WC QF and against both sides in the 2003 WC.
No need for further mental gymnastics.
This is the kind of thing you'd expect from an uneducated ex-cricketer like Abdul Razzaq who once called Bumrah a "baby bowler".
It's a very satisfying feeling as a Pakistan fan to know that Wasim Akram, who was a genius and some say was arguably the greatest fast bowler ever, and yet we Pakistan fans can boast Waqar and Imran Khan who were arguably better fast bowlers.. I did say arguably twice here, in two different contexts.
A similar analogy could be Sobers, Viv and Lara -- any one of these three could be Arguably the greatest test batsman ever, and yet the other two were arguably better.![]()
Dumbest thing I've probably ever read on PP.
Australia were the best team in the 90s and 2000s. Doesn't matter what you think of India's batting line up, what matters is that they have always been Pakistan's biggest rival.
If you can't deliver in their backyard and let them destroy you in World Cup matches then it shows that Waqar failed when the stakes were high.
In tests, he averaged 40 in Australia and well over 70 in India. He choked in crucial World cup matches including the 1996 WC QF and against both sides in the 2003 WC.
No need for further mental gymnastics. Having read your posts I would look in the mirror before bringing up "baby arguments".
This is the kind of thing you'd expect from an uneducated ex-cricketer like Abdul Razzaq who once called Bumrah a "baby bowler".
Australia were not the best team until 1995. West Indies were still the best team until then. Waqar took 19 wickets in 3 matches in their back yard in 1993
England had the no1 (Gooch) and no2 (Robin Smith) batsmen in the world in 1992. He beat them in their own back yard.
He didn’t play india in their back yard until 1999 when everyone (even you probably) should know he wasn’t the same bowler. And Pakistan beat India anyway over the 3 tests they played in that period in their “back yard”
Learn some history and don’t give me random stats.
Don’t give me baby arguments
Took 19 wickets in Windies in 1993 but had no impact on the series. Got clobbered by Simmons and Haynes and lost the series 2-0. He had little support to be fair.
But that's no excuse for a bowler who could, supposedly, win matches on his own.
If Waqar's peak only lasted 27 matches (1990-1994), that goes against him. No need to make excuses for his lack of performances in India/Australia or outside of his peak.
His overall record, is impressive but inferior to that if his contemporaries. He bashed minnows Zimbabwe and Bangladesh which skews his stats. Take them out and his career average creeps over 25.
None of his other contemporaries' stats are as skewed by his minnow bashing.
Outside of his peak, he impacted the results of probably only 3 test matches against top opposition. Lords test against England, 1996 and the 1st 2 tests of the series in SL.
As for the West Indies being the #1 Test team till 1995, they were a declining team since 1989, as acknowledged by Brian Lara himself. The only reason they somehow managed to cling on to the #1 spot till 1995 is because of their bowlers. They didn’t have a single world class batsman apart from Lara in that period.
What is wrong in that?Quite simple really.
Wasim Akram won Pakistan the 92 WC. Waqar's absence in the tournament was actually a blessing in disguise as he was a bottler on the big stage as evident by his record against Australia and India, who had the 2 best batting line-ups during his time. Wasim on the other hand performed very well against both sides.
His records in away tests played in Australia and India was awful and he choked against them in the World Cup matches. When the stakes were high, the more he choked and as result the more that Pakistan suffered.
His understanding of cricket has always been substandard and that can be reflected by how he fared during his multiple stints as Head and/or Bowling Coach.
He was not a likeable individual either. He was instructing Wasim to get out to prevent Kumble getting a 10fer. He deliberately bowled beamers at Symonds during the 2003 WC match and has also fallen out with many players. He confessed that he was to blame for why him and Wasim never got on.
He had 2 good stages during his career. First was during the 80s up until the 92 England WC tour before he got injured and just before the end of his career when he mastered the art of conventional swing. It took him a while because he was a one trick pony. He relied on reverse swing via ball tampering. Without it he was just an above average/decent bowler i.e. not quite world class.
Wasim Akram had all the ingredients and utilised all of these to become one greatest fast bowlers of all-time.
Took 19 wickets in Windies in 1993 but had no impact on the series. Got clobbered by Simmons and Haynes and lost the series 2-0. He had little support to be fair.
But that's no excuse for a bowler who could, supposedly, win matches on his own.
If Waqar's peak only lasted 27 matches (1990-1994), that goes against him. No need to make excuses for his lack of performances in India/Australia or outside of his peak.
His overall record, is impressive but inferior to that if his contemporaries. He bashed minnows Zimbabwe and Bangladesh which skews his stats. Take them out and his career average creeps over 25.
None of his other contemporaries' stats are as skewed by his minnow bashing.
Outside of his peak, he impacted the results of probably only 3 test matches against top opposition. Lords test against England, 1996 and the 1st 2 tests of the series in SL.
The only series where Waqar bashed a minnow was Zimbabwe 1993 with 25 wickets in 3 matches.
Impacted the results of only 3 matches against “top opposition”?
First test 1990 at Karachi vs West Indies (9 wickets in the match)
Vs England - Lords and the Oval test matches 1992 - 5fer in each game
First test Australia karachi 1994 - 8 wickets in the match
New Zealand 1990 (29 wickets in 3 matches) - they were a fantastic batting side with Martin Crowe, John Wright, Franklin who had an amazing tour of England in 1990 vs England.
Legendary Hamilton test
1994 test series
I’m the first to admit Waqar wasn’t great post 1996 and his second back injury. But proud he played on with pockets of success along the way and did an adequate job without reaching those great heights again. Some bowlers never come back from back injury and I still respect them like Ian Bishop.
Waqar’s peak was extraordinary by anyone’s standards. His second coming wasn’t great, but allowed him to have a great career rather than fizzle out like a lot of express pacers do after they lose their speed. And even after all that he still has one of the best strike rates of all time for bowlers who have taken over 300 wickets.
He will be just below top tier of all time because of his performances in the second half of his career. But his peak was unmatched by anyone.
Not Bangladesh and Zimbabwe, but Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe. Both were minnows during that time. He feasted against them. Sri Lanka had just one decent batsman, Aravinda De Silva, while Ranatunga was a below par Test batsman averaging barely 35 in his career. As usual, he was a flop against Australi even when he was at his peak averaging 34 odd against them.
Sr Lanka were not minnows imo. During the time period of Waqar's career, SL won a test series in NZ , won a test in England, 2 test series in Pakistan , beat Pakistan to win the Asian test championship in 2002 and had a decent home record as well. I wont call them minnows. Their away record was superior to India's for example.
Remove BD and Zim, and Waqar's career average is around 25.16. His contemporaries' averages don't fall off like that when we exclude minnows Zimbabwe and BD.
Career stats(excluding Zimbabwe and BD)
Waqar - 293 wickets at 25.16
Pollock - 389 wickets at 23.78
Wasim - 367 wickets at 23.78
Walsh - 510 wickets at 24.61
Donald - 316 wickets at 22.50
Ambrose - 397 wickets at 21.16
McGrath - 549 wickets at 21.73
You are reaching there. I don’t even remember him playing any matches against bangladesh. And so what if he took wickets against them and zimbos.
People do.
Look at Tendulkar - he has an average of 136 against bangladesh. If you take away his matches against bangla and zimbos he has a much inferior record than Lara. He’s played 21 extra matches and scored fewer runs.
If you take away mcgrath and warne’s record against their bunny team England it’s not as good.
Anyone can play silly games with stats.
Alec Stewart said that W&W were very hard to face. Wasim maybe 1% harder because Stewart couldn’t see his approach to the wicket - he popped out from behind the umpire and quickly ran through his action.
W&W respected Stewie because he would clobber them with the new ball, and have runs on the board when it started to reverse. He got a 175 (though Waqar was not playing) in that 1992 series and carried his bat in another match.
Alec Stewart said that W&W were very hard to face. Wasim maybe 1% harder because Stewart couldn’t see his approach to the wicket - he popped out from behind the umpire and quickly ran through his action.
W&W respected Stewie because he would clobber them with the new ball, and have runs on the board when it started to reverse. He got a 175 (though Waqar was not playing) in that 1992 series and carried his bat in another match.
I have no problem if anyone wants to rate Lara over Tendulkar based on Sachins minnow bashing. SRT still averages above 50 .
What do you mean people do? Only Waqar has 21 % of his test wickets against those 2 minnows . Next highest being Wasim at 11% .
England were McGrath's bunny team because he was THAT good. Not because England were test minnows like Zimbabwe or BD lol. Peurike logic!
Im not taking anything away from Mcgrath or Tendulkar but what I’m saying is anyone can play silly mathematical yoga with stats. It just depends which way you look at it. These were examples that you took way too seriously. Calm the anger down little one.
And even if Waqar averaged 25 and still had a strike rate in the 40s minus minnows - it’s still ATG stats.
Stewart was brilliant against us in 96 as well, Waqar was more fearsome during the 92 series but picked up a few 4-fers during 96 IIRC.
Yes, that could be the reason , but purely on cricketing reasons , Waqar for me was a bigger match winner and watchable fearsome fastmnn than Wasim.Wasim was always shrewd and was careful enough to be "camera-ready" while Waqar came across as bitter and brutish.
Also because he was a flop with a capital F against Australia, and particularly in Australia his entire career.Waqar does not get the same adulation because of his non performance in the world cups. He missed 1992 WC and was the main reason for Pakistan's exit in the 1996 WC. He just played one game in 1999 WC and was decent in his last WC 2003 where he tool 7 wickets in 6 games. Wasim was more talented bowler who did not rely on one type of ball to get the wickets and also his legend was made when Pakistan won the 1992 WC finals where was was the MOM. Even in his last world cup when he was past his prime, he out bowled Waqar by a huge margin claiming 12 wickets at 16 in 6 games.
No matter how hard you try to paint the picture but you can’t mask the filter waqar used throughout his career (Ball tempering) Cause of that he got lots of wickets that too against minnows and tailenders still he was decent bowler bUt when cameras surfaced more in matches ball tempering got limited He was no better Than Ashok Dinda both were equal. Wasim is definitely legendAustralia were not the best team until 1995. West Indies were still the best team until then. Waqar took 19 wickets in 3 matches in their back yard in 1993
England had the no1 (Gooch) and no2 (Robin Smith) batsmen in the world in 1992. He beat them in their own back yard.
He didn’t play india in their back yard until 1999 when everyone (even you probably) should know he wasn’t the same bowler. And Pakistan beat India anyway over the 3 tests they played in that period in their “back yard”
Learn some history and don’t give me random stats.
Don’t give me baby arguments
No matter how hard you try to paint the picture but you can’t mask the filter waqar used throughout his career (Ball tempering) Cause of that he got lots of wickets that too against minnows and tailenders still he was decent bowler bUt when cameras surfaced more in matches ball tempering got limited He was no better Than Ashok Dinda both were equal. Wasim is definitely legend
Have you seen him doing ball tempering???No matter how hard you try to paint the picture but you can’t mask the filter waqar used throughout his career (Ball tempering) Cause of that he got lots of wickets that too against minnows and tailenders still he was decent bowler bUt when cameras surfaced more in matches ball tempering got limited He was no better Than Ashok Dinda both were equal. Wasim is definitely legend
The first player in cricket history to be suspended for ball tampering was Waqar. Pakistan did not even contest the charge.Have you seen him doing ball tempering???
Stop posting stuff that you have no proof about...
Waqar made his debut in 1989.The first player in cricket history to be suspended for ball tampering was Waqar. Pakistan did not even contest the charge.
Absolutely. Pakistan played under intense and Racist media coverage. Those that weren't around to experience it, don't know the extent of it. There is no way he would have escaped if he was dodgy.Nonsense about tv cameras. Waqar did not play in an era with black n white TV with a solitary camera! Pakistan were the most scrutinised team in the world especially post 1992 when the England team threw a tantrum. If his performances were going to dip it would have been immediately after that. Yet, he was still prolific until 1997.
Question asked about seeing Waqar tampering the ball.Waqar made his debut in 1989.
His charge was in 2000.
If you want to put an asterix on Waqar then similar asterix must be placed on almost all bowlers during the 90s including Indian bowlers during that time and lately we must apply those filters to Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Dale Steyn who played under captains who were caught tampering.
Sorry, want to be clear what you mean by this - he went for 50-60 games without a 5fer?I do think that even Wasim and many other bowlers benefitted from Tampering, but I did not put asterix on Wasim's name. I do know that Steyn tampered as well. Many bowlers have been caught tampering, but no bowler was that much dependent on tampering and reverse. Neutral umpires came in mid 90s and camera started capturing more stuff. Waqar did drop in his pace after injury but going from picking 5-fers so frequently to stop picking 5-fers for not just 10-15 tests , but 50-60 tests after nuetral umpires/camera came in picture tells me that Waqar was one trick pony and heavily dependent on it.
So Asterix is not about simply being caught or being the first player to be suspended for ball tampering. It's his dependency on it.
Sorry, want to be clear what you mean by this - he went for 50-60 games without a 5fer?
You mention he got caught in 2000, and you also believe he tampered from the beginning, so he must have continued tampering during this decline no, Or did he stop for a while and then pick it up?
You have came to the conclusion that Wasim adapted to no ball tampering and Waqar didn't. Hence the difference in quality.I don't understand why people usually willing to condemn the various degrees of cheating and dishonesty throughout Pakistani society suddenly bite their tongues on the subject of ball tampering in the 1990s.
We accept this generation used drugs, mutinied against various captains, got caught for drunk driving, and fixed matches. Yet ball tampering is a bridge too far ?
Tampering was rife in that era where TV coverage wasn't as comprehensive like today. Pakistan particularly stood to benefit with the dry, abrasive conditions at home/Sharjah, patriotic umpires like Shakoor Rana who turned a blind eye, and possessing two generational fast bowlers with skillsets ideally suited to exploit reverse swing - especially Waqar with his pace and low, slingy action.
Carl Hooper said in his recent PP interview that during WI's 1991 Test series in Pakistan, the ball looked like a dog chewed it. He didn't go further but the inference was clear. Hooper is a very mild mannered individual, spoke glowingly of Pakistan cricket in that interview and has no axe to grind. The fact xenophobic English journalists in 1992, or Indian trolls over the years who live to undermine Pakistan cricket, repeated these allegations doesn't invalidate them.
Waqar still had a good career but lacking the pace and extravagant reverse of his early days, his numbers dropped post-1994. Wasim didn't decline to the same extent because even without pace or extravagant reverse - batsmen still had to contend with his quick arm action making it hard to read cues, was taller than Waqar so could force you onto the backfoot, and left-arm angle which was rarer in that era unlike now.
It was so extensive that even blood coming out of fingers by cut from bottle cap did not have any effect on umpires. If you could get away with that then you could get away with anything.You have came to the conclusion that Wasim adapted to no ball tampering and Waqar didn't. Hence the difference in quality.
Yet the explanation may be a lot simpler, Wasim was a better bowler.
There is no proof of extensive ball tampering. Citing a player dropping in form is not a good enough explanation. Plenty of players succumb to injuries and their career peters out.
You have formed your opinion and are now trying to fit the data to suit.Waqar played 50-60 tests after 1994 and he has grand total of 1 5-fers against non-minnows. He was picking 5-fers at a very high rate and then simply stopped picking 5-fers, like some one flipped a switch. Injury is not a likly exlanation here. Have you come across any bowler playing 50+ tests after injury with 1 5-fer agaisnt non-minnows? Or let's say any bowler without considering injury aspect playing for 50+ tests with 1 5-fers against non-minnows. I don't know any except Waqar.
Tampering became far harder with neutral umpires( Nuetral umpires started in mid 90s). Tampering happens even now, but it's far harder to get away without getting caught. Before neutral umpires and camera following the bowlers, it was free for all and Waqar relied on reverse the most. That's why as soon as it became hard to do, his performance flipped. It was not the same situation with Wasim. It's one thing to benefit from ball tampering and reverse but it's another to so heavily depend on that you stop picking 5-fers for 50-60% of your career.
Degree of tampering will be drastically different after neutral umpires and camera. The way you are phrasing it, we had tampering during Steyn time and in 2000 and in early 90s. All were same. That's not true at all.You have formed your opinion and are now trying to fit the data to suit.
But the facts are his career nose dived after first few years, and he was also charged with tampering at the end.
If you accept that he tampered at the start and got caught tampering at the end then it would be reasonable to also assume that he tampered throughout.
So the alleged tampering should be a constant no?
Your article only proves Kiwis admitted they tampered with the ball. Parts about blood flowing on the pitch, Intikhab Alam sneaking into their dressing room to steal the ball and they think the ball was so tampered that Pakistanis were using a knife on the pitch is good things to include in a book but most people will raise their eyebrows.Degree of tampering will be drastically different after neutral umpires and camera. The way you are phrasing it, we had tampering during Steyn time and in 2000 and in early 90s. All were same. That's not true at all.
No bowler can get away with blood coming out of finger due to cut from bottle caps in front of umpire like early 90s.
There is no point in debating this if you think degree of tamperding will remain the same with neutral umpires and lots of cameras.Why would degree of tampering be different?
And Tendulkar your Bhagwaan was the first batsman in history to be done for ball tampering.Question asked about seeing Waqar tampering the ball.
Given he was the first player in cricket history to get suspension for ball tamperning and PCB did not contest, no need to ask if anyone saw Waqar tampering.
--------------------
Many fans simply think that Waqar stopped taking 5-fers due to injury. But cameras, neutral umpires and injury all three played it's part in Waqar stopped taking 5-fers after first 30 tests or so. On other hands, Wasim did not drop like a rock and continued for 50-60 tests without picking 5-fers after neutral umpires/cameras came.