Former Pakistan fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar has said that people should read his autobiography first to “understand his remarks” about Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid, and added that they are “world class cricketers”.
“I am not here to clarify anything… but facts in my book have been presented in a rather strange manner by the media here,” Akhtar said responding to queries about his remarks on Tendulkar and Dravid. “I request people to read the book to understand my remarks about Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid…what I said, why I said and the manner in which I said. They are all world class cricketers. Please go through the book…” Akhtar said.
In his autobiography Controversially Yours, Akhtar says that he intimidated master blaster Tendulkar with his delivery during the Faisalabad Test. “I bowled (Sachin) a particularly fast ball which he, to my amazement, didn’t even touch. He walked away! That was the first time I saw him walk away from me that, too, on the slow track at Faisalabad,” Akhtar wrote. “I think players like Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid weren’t exactly match winners to start with, nor did they know the art of finishing the game.”
Akhtar has also alleged that he was cheated by Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan and former Indian Premier League chairman Lalit Modi. “Shah Rukh and I talked about my not being happy with the money settled on me. Shah Rukh and Modi got me to agree. I should have never listened to Modi and Shah Rukh,” he said. Akhtar, who retired after the 2011 World Cup, also admitted to ball tampering and feels it should be legalised.
The book chronicles and questions the game that was a part of his life, his peers, the PCC Board and the ICC. The book is full of anecdotes. The book was released by Pakistan High commissioner to India Shahid Malik. Elaborating on his bowling, he said: “Some days fast bowlers are threatened by batsmen and on some days, you see the ‘scare (fright)’ in the batsmen’s eyes. I know what I see in people. I scare them away. We would analyse their body language and use them to our advantage.”
“You will find in the book my humble background and where I come from. I have been honest to my game. You will understand from the book that apart from the controversy you will see the struggle behind the game and the long, lonely nights… No one creates controversies by choice,” Akhtar added. Akhtar, who has retired from international cricket, said he has “been working on the book for the last two years… since 2008”. “I announced my retirement so that I could concentrate on the book,” he said.
“The book has everything about my life and all that happened to me… including the controversies,” he said. Akhtar was in conversation with sports writer Boria Mazumdar. “I love India… despite being a Pakistani, so many Indians love me,” he said. An Imran Khan fan, as a boy Akhtar would often go to the Pindi Cricket Club to watch Khan, Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis practise on the net, Pakistan envoy Malik said, recalling Akhtar’s early days. “He would tell his friend, ‘Someday I would play with them’ and five years down the line he was there on the top,” envoy Malik said. Akhtar, whose troubled knees are “getting worse by the day”, said “I found it difficult to walk straight”.
I didn’t cheat anyone: Shah Rukh
IPL team Kolkata Knight Riders owner Shah Rukh Khan says he has no clue about the allegations levelled against him by retired Pakistan pacer Shoaib Akhtar, who has claimed that he should never have listened to the Bollywood star while joining the IPL.
Shoaib, in his biography ‘Controversially Yours’, has claimed that he was betrayed by the then IPL commissioner Lalit Modi as he made him agree to join KKR for money which was less than what he was offered in the now-defunct ICL. The pacer goes on to say that he should not have taken the advice offered by Shah Rukh on the matter. Reacting to this, Shah Rukh pleaded ignorance on the matter.
“I don’t know all this. I did not cheat anyone,” said the actor. In his book, Akhtar has said, “Shah Rukh and I talked about my not being happy with the money settled on me. Shah Rukh and Modi got me to agree. I should have never listened to Modi and Shah Rukh.”
Shoaib should apologise to Tendulkar, Dravid
Senior BCCI functionary Rajiv Shukla on Saturday demanded an apology from Shoaib Akhtar for making disparaging remarks against India’s batting stalwarts such as Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid in his biography. In the just-released book ‘Controversially Yours’, Akhtar had words of praise for Tendulkar and Dravid but his remark that they lacked ability to finish off games early in their respective careers has created a controversy.
Shukla, a senior BCCI official and IPL chairman, said Tendulkar did not need any certificate from Akhtar as his class was acknowledged by none other than Sir Don Bradman. “He (Tendulkar) is still touching new heights and as far as Dravid is concerned, he is continuing to play some great knocks, which shows his commitment to the team. Whatever Shoaib has written is distasteful.
“A player such as Tendulkar does not need any certificate from Shoaib as he got that from Australian legend Sir Don Bradman. Tendulkar does not need to prove anything to Shoaib. He must apologise to both Tendulkar and Dravid,” Shukla, who was here to attend UPCA AGM, told reporters. Talking about India’s forgettable England tour, Shukla blamed injuries to key players for the debacle.
“The main reason for the defeats was that some of our key players were not in the team due to injuries. But we must say that England players were outstanding and whoever plays better wins,” Shukla said. The new IPL chairman rebutted the suggestions that players were overworked and that their injuries aggravated by playing in the T20 league.
“We have a lot players in the reserve slot. When a player gets injured or want to take rest due to fatigue, he informs and we replace him. We did the same during the England tour and we got some new talent. Nobody now can say that the schedule of the Indian team is tight. We play as much as some other leading nations,” he said.