'Didn't Know About Sachin, Saqlain Told me About Him': Shoaib Shares Anecdote from Initial Playing Days

India and Pakistan will be up against each other later this month in the Asia Cup 2022, on August 28. It’s going to be one of those occasions when cricket fans across countries will keep everything aside to witness the high-voltage clash. Indo-Pak cricket games have always been fascinating but in recent times, both nations no longer play bilateral series and are confined to ICC and ACC events, due to political tensions between them.

Both India and Pakistan have rich cricketing history and there are unending interesting stories about their on-field rivalries. One of them is between Indian batting great Sachin Tendulkar and former speedster Shoaib Akhtar. Both have shared a great bond off the field and respect each other and were equally competitive on the field.

Recently, Shoaib shared an interesting anecdote about Sachin. While speaking on Star Sports, the former pacer said he hardly had any idea about the stature of the Indian master blaster when he burst into the cricketing scene.

“Saqlain told me about Sachin Tendulkar and his stature. I didn’t know about him. I was lost in my own world. I didn’t know. I only knew what I will do and what the batter was thinking," Akhtar said in a video posted by Star Sports.

Akhtar was an epitome of sheer pace who went on to become the fastest bowler in the history of the game. He said he only thought of bowling faster, picking up a five-wicket haul and winning games for Pakistan.

“The big difference between your fast bowlers and ours was that we used to look for excuses to bowl fast. Whenever I used to realise that the ball is reverse-swinging, I thought, ‘If I get a spell here, I will run through the batters’. I will just take the five wickets there and win the match for Pakistan. You can’t be a star without being a match-winner. We used to win games for the country," Akhtar said.

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