https://arab.news/yz8qu
- Akram, also known as 鈥淭he Sultan of Swing鈥� during playing days, in UAE for DP World ILT20 season 2 commentary
LONDON: Wasim Akram Junior, a promising young cricketer living in the UAE, got to meet his namesake and idol this weekend: Pakistan bowling legend Wasim Akram.
Akram Junior, who plays for the International League T20 Thunderbolts in the league鈥檚 development tournament, recently bowled his way to figures of 6 for 21 and lapped up the opportunity to take advice from one of the game鈥檚 greatest ever pace bowlers.
鈥淭his is the first time I have met him. It was so great to meet the legend. I have been following him and his bowling for many years so that I can learn and become a good bowler, by God鈥檚 grace. I have met him now, and I will try my best to emulate him in whatever way I can,鈥� he said.
鈥淭his opportunity has come to me now, here in the UAE, and I will grab it with both hands. I will try to learn as much as I can from him.
鈥淓ven 10 minutes spent with him is equivalent to a decade for me because I can learn a lot in that small amount of time and further work on it, and that will eventually be very beneficial for me as cricketer.鈥�
The 28-year-old was named after the Pakistani cricketing icon by his father. 鈥淢y father is a very big fan of Wasim Akram, and when I was born he named me after him. And as I grew up, I also started to look up to him and took after him, bowling left-arm pace and batting as a left-hander too,鈥� Akram Junior said.
28-year-old Wasim Akram Junior (L) was named after the Pakistani cricketing icon (R) by his father. (Supplied)
鈥淚f I could learn any skill from him then it would have to be the out-swinger, because there are no words to describe how well he executed the out-swinger. If I can add that trick to my armory, it would be a boost to me as a bowler.
鈥淎nd hopefully, if I can learn it well and produce good performances, the fans and the audiences might be reminded of the legend鈥檚 exploits.鈥�
The conversation between the two involved technical pointers, with the 1992 World Cup winner praising the youngster and following it up with a word of advice and a promise to further help him out during a training session at the nets.
鈥淚 am impressed by Wasim鈥檚 talent; in fact, I saw his six-wicket spell (in the ILT20 Development Tournament 2023) on the internet and immediately noticed his pace and accuracy,鈥� Akram said.
鈥淚 wish him the very best and if possible, on this tour, I will spend some time with him in the nets as well.鈥�
Akram, also known as 鈥淭he Sultan of Swing鈥� during his playing days, is in the UAE for the DP World ILT20 season 2 as part of the commentary panel.