Wasim Akram facts for kids
Akram in 2018
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| Full name |
Wasim Akram
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| Born | 3 June 1966 Lahore, West Pakistan |
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| Nickname | Sultan of Swing | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.91 m (6 ft 3 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Batting | Left-handed | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bowling | Left-arm fast | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Role | Bowler | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Relations |
Huma Akram
(m. 1995; died 2009) |
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| International information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| National side |
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| Test debut (cap 102) | 25 January 1985 v New Zealand | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Last Test | 8 May 2002 v Bangladesh | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ODI debut (cap 53) | 23 November 1984 v New Zealand | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Last ODI | 4 March 2003 v Zimbabwe | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ODI shirt no. | 3 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Domestic team information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1984–1986 | Pakistan Automobiles Corporation | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1985–1987, 1997–1998, 2000–2001 | Lahore | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1988–1998 | Lancashire | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1992–2003 | PIA | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2003 | Hampshire | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Career statistics | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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Source: CricInfo, 4 April 2012
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Wasim Akram is a famous Pakistani cricket commentator, coach, and former cricketer. He was also the captain of the Pakistan national cricket team. Many people think Akram is one of the greatest bowlers of all time. He is often called The Sultan of Swing because of his amazing bowling skills.
In October 2013, Wasim Akram was the only Pakistani cricketer chosen for an all-time Test World XI. This special team was picked to celebrate 150 years of Wisden Cricketers' Almanack, a famous cricket book. As captain, he led Pakistan to the finals of the 1999 Cricket World Cup. They finished second after losing to Australia. He was also part of the Pakistani team that won the 1992 Cricket World Cup.
Wasim Akram was a left-arm fast bowler who could bowl very quickly. He holds the world record for taking the most wickets in List A cricket, with 881 wickets. He is also second in ODI wickets, with 502 in total. Only Muttiah Muralitharan has more ODI wickets. Wasim Akram is known for being one of the first and best at reverse swing bowling.
He was the first bowler to reach 500 wickets in ODI cricket. He achieved this during the 2003 Cricket World Cup. In 2002, Wisden ranked Wasim as the best ODI bowler ever. He was ahead of many other great bowlers like Allan Donald and Imran Khan. Wasim took 23 four-wicket hauls in his 356 ODI matches. In 2009, Akram was added to the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame. He has also worked as a bowling coach for different teams.
The Government of Pakistan gave him the Hilal-e-Imtiaz award on 23 March 2019. This award was for his great achievements in cricket throughout his life.
Contents
Early Life and Family
Wasim Akram was born on 3 June 1966 in Lahore, Pakistan. His family is Punjabi. His father, Chaudhary Muhammed Akram, moved to Pakistan after the partition of India in 1947. Wasim has three siblings: two older brothers, Naeem and Nadeem, and a younger sister, Sofia. He studied at Government Islamia College in Lahore.
When he was 30, Akram was diagnosed with diabetes. Since then, he has worked to help raise awareness about diabetes.
Akram married Huma Mufti in 1995. They had two sons, Tahmoor (born 1996) and Akbar (born 2000). Huma sadly passed away in 2009.
On 7 July 2013, Akram got engaged to Shaniera Thompson, an Australian woman. He met her in Melbourne in 2011. They married on 12 August 2013 in Lahore. Wasim said it was a new, happy start for him and his children.
He later moved from Lahore to Karachi with his family. On 27 December 2014, Shaniera gave birth to their daughter, Aiyla Sabeen Rose Akram, in Melbourne.
Playing Cricket
Starting His Career
Akram started playing cricket with a tape ball. He later joined Ludhiana Gymkhana. His first big cricket match was for BCCP Patron's Eleven against the New Zealand team.
In 1988, Akram joined Lancashire County Cricket Club in England. He played for them until 1998. Fans in England loved him and would even sing "Wasim for England" at matches. In 1998, with Akram as captain, Lancashire won two major tournaments.
International Matches
Test Cricket Debut
Akram played his first Test cricket match for Pakistan against New Zealand in 1985. In only his second Test match, he took 10 wickets! Just weeks before joining the Pakistan team, he was not even on his college team. A famous player, Javed Miandad, saw him bowl and insisted he join the national team. So, Akram got to play for Pakistan without much experience in local matches.
Wasim Akram quickly became a star in international cricket in the late 1980s. He is currently the highest wicket-taker for Pakistan in Test cricket, with 414 wickets.
One Day International Matches
Akram began his ODI career against New Zealand in Pakistan in 1984. He became well-known after taking five wickets in his third ODI against Australia in 1985. His wickets included important players like Kepler Wessels and Allan Border. Wasim Akram is currently the highest wicket-taker for Pakistan in One Day International cricket.
Early Success
In the 1985–1986 Austral-Asia Cup, Akram helped Pakistan win big against New Zealand. He and Abdul Qadir bowled out New Zealand for only 64 runs. In the final against India, he took key wickets, including Dilip Vengsarkar.
Akram took his 100th wicket in ODI cricket in 1989 against West Indies. In that same match, he took his first hat-trick, bowling out three batsmen in a row. He took his second ODI hat-trick against Australia in 1990, again bowling out all three batsmen.
Becoming the World's Best
| Wasim Akram's results in international matches | ||||||
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| Matches | Won | Lost | Drawn | Tied | No result | |
| Test | 104 | 41 | 27 | 36 | 0 | – |
| ODI | 356 | 199 | 145 | – | 6 | 6 |
Akram was a very important player in the 1992 Cricket World Cup in Australia and New Zealand. Pakistan won the tournament that year. In the final against England, Akram scored 33 runs quickly, helping Pakistan reach a good total. Then, he took the wicket of Ian Botham early on. Later, with the ball reverse swinging, he bowled out Allan Lamb and Chris Lewis on back-to-back balls. His amazing performance earned him the Man of the Match award for the final.
In 1993, Akram had his best year in ODIs, taking 46 wickets. He took six 4-wicket hauls that year.
Later Career
In 1999, he led Pakistan to the finals of the World Cup again. However, they lost to Australia.
He was Pakistan's best bowler in the 2003 Cricket World Cup, taking 12 wickets in 6 matches. After this tournament, he retired from international cricket. He continued to play for Hampshire until the end of the English season.
Records and Achievements
Wasim Akram won 17 Man-of-the-Match awards in Test matches. He also won 22 Man-of-the-Match awards in ODIs. He took four hat-tricks in international cricket: two in ODIs and two in Tests. This means he shares the record for most international hat-tricks with Lasith Malinga.
His score of 257 not out against Zimbabwe in 1996 is the highest score ever by a number-8 batsman in Test matches. In that game, he hit 12 sixes, which is still a world record for the most sixes in a single Test innings.
- In his Test career, Akram took 414 wickets in 104 matches. This is a record for Pakistan. He also scored 2,898 runs.
- In One Day Internationals, Akram took 502 wickets in 356 matches. He also scored 3,717 runs.
- Akram was the first bowler to take more than 400 wickets in both Test and ODI cricket. Only Muttiah Muralitharan has done this since.
- He used to hold the record for the most wickets in Cricket World Cups, with 55 wickets. Glenn McGrath later broke this record.
- Akram is one of only two bowlers, along with Lasith Malinga, to have taken four or more hat-tricks in international cricket.
- He holds the record for facing the most balls in a Test innings as a number 8 batsman (363 balls).
- He was the first bowler to take 500 ODI wickets. He still holds the record for taking the most ODI wickets as a fast bowler (502).
- Wasim Akram is the only person to take over 100 ODI wickets at the same ground (122 at Sharjah Cricket Stadium).
After Cricket
Media Work
Since retiring, Akram has become a popular cricket commentator for TV networks like ESPN Star Sports. He has covered many big tournaments, including the 2009 and 2011 World Cups.
Coaching
In 2010, Akram became a bowling coach for the Kolkata Knight Riders, an Indian Premier League team. He helped many young bowlers, including Mohammed Shami and Umesh Yadav, improve their skills. He also helped sign Pakistani bowler Mohammad Irfan.
Akram has also coached at fast bowling camps in Pakistan. He helped discover talented teenage bowlers like Mohammad Amir and Junaid Khan. He has worked as a director and bowling coach for teams in the Pakistan Super League, like Islamabad United and Multan Sultans. He is currently the chairman and bowling coach of Karachi Kings.
How He Played
Wasim Akram was known for his fast and aggressive bowling. He had excellent control over where the ball went and could make it seam and swing both ways. He was especially dangerous with reverse swing, making the ball move unpredictably as it got older. This skill earned him the nickname "Sultan of Swing."
He often aimed for the stumps and had a very powerful inswinger and yorker. Out of his 414 Test wickets, many were either leg before wicket or bowled. With Waqar Younis, they formed a famous bowling pair known as "the two Ws." They were a nightmare for batsmen in the 1990s.
As a batsman, he was good against spin bowlers. He was known for hitting big shots. In October 1996, he scored an amazing 257 runs not out against Zimbabwe. He also helped Pakistan win matches with his batting, like in the Nehru Cup in 1989, when he hit a six to win the game.
Many cricket legends have praised Akram. West Indian great Viv Richards said Akram was the best fast bowler he ever faced after Dennis Lillee. Ricky Ponting also said Akram was one of the toughest bowlers because he could always bowl an unplayable ball.
Beyond Cricket
Television and Films
Akram has appeared on television shows as a judge and host. He was a judge on Ek Khiladi Ek Haseena in 2008. He has also hosted The Sportsman Show and Geo Khelo Pakistan. In 2023, he appeared in a film called Money Back Guarantee.
Autobiography
Wasim Akram's life story is told in his autobiography, Sultan: A Memoir. It was written with cricket writer Gideon Haigh and published in 2022.
Images for kids
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Wasim Akram during IPL, 2015
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Akram in 2014 in India
