A legendary fast bowler of his generation, Waqar Younis bade farewell to the game he loved and dominated for more than a decade. Along with his equally illustrious partner, Wasim Akram, the two formed the most potent pair of fast bowlers the world had seen in a long time.
”It is a sad day for me but the right time to go” Waqar said announcing his retirement to an audience of media personnel, on the eve of the Third Test between India and Pakistan.
Waqar, who turned 32 last November, made his Test debut in the same match as Sachin Tendulkar did for India, in 1989 at Karachi. Thereon, he rose to become one of the most dreaded fast bowler, not only on the international circuit, but also while playing for Surrey and Glamorgan and in his fading years for Warwickshire. Like Sachin he too rose to become an icon of the game.
The ‘toe-crusher’ as he was known for his in-swinging yorkers and hurricane pace, Waqar went on to play 87 Tests for his country taking 373 Test wickets (23.56), second highest Pakistani wicket taker. He is of course bettered only by Wasim who took 414 Test wickets. Waqar’s best return for the match was 7 for 76 which he took against New Zealand at Faisalabad in 1990-91. In One-Day internationals he bagged 416 wickets (23.84) in 262 matches, finishing this time second on the all time list, behind, yet again, Wasim Akram’s world record 502 wickets.
His strike rate of 43.4 balls per wicket is the best amongst the Test bowlers with 200 or more wickets and the fifth best in Test history. His first fifty wickets in Tests came in ten Test matches and his hundred in only twenty Tests
I first saw Waqar when he made his One-Day debut at Sharjah in 1989 October. A tear away fast bowler with blistering pace and raw in line and direction, he was impressive with his flowing run-up and side-on action, reminiscent of Harold Larwood and Ray Lindwall, the great fast bowlers of their time for England and Australia. He looked both rolled into one.
And what a find it was for Pakistan as he along with Wasim Akram ruled the game for more than a decade with his venomous pace and attacking fast bowling. There was no batsmen of his time who did not shiver in his boots while facing him. Such was his terrorising approach to the wicket.
Born in Vehari in the Burewalla district of Punjab, Waqar came to earn the nick name, the ‘Burewalla Express’ because of lightening speed. He won nine of his 16 Tests, losing seven as the captain of his country since being appointed for the job for the tour of England in 2001. His first wore the captain’s band against the touring Zimbabweans, leading Pakistan to victory. “It was great bowling alongside Wasim, he contributed to 50 per cent of my success,” Waqar said.
“We shared the burden and complemented each other. I was proud to be part of a partnership that was referred to as the ‘Two W’s’ of Pakistan cricket,” said Waqar as he was all praise for his senior partner.
His 29 wickets in a series of three Tests against New Zealand in the home series and 19 wickets on the tour of England in 1992 were his memorable performances in the Test arena.
“People sometime talk of rivalry and controversy between us. It was nothing serious. In fact, any rivalry was a healthy one and good for the team,” Waqar said commenting on his well know tiffs with Wasim.
In the thirty-four One-day Internationals that he led Pakistan, he led them to 25 victories and suffering nine losses.
He was sidelined as captain after Pakistan failed to qualify for the Super-Six stages of the last World Cup in South Africa. When asked to say farewell last year against South Africa in Pakistan, he declined the offer saying he wanted to make a comeback and play for Pakistan for few more years.
“I thought I could have played for few more years or so, but I lost the hunger because the selectors did not consider me good enough to represent the country any more,” Waqar said in his farewell speech.
Since his retirement speech, waqar has been inundated with tributes. Indian captain Sourav Ganguly paying tributes to Waqar said, “He was a lethal bowler who could run through a side at any stage of the game. No batsman could afford to relax while facing him.”
“He is a role model for bowlers. He had pace, aggression, control and reverse swing. His outstanding record speaks for itself,” opined Sachin Tendulkar.
Rahul Dravid, one of the greats of modern day batting said, “Waqar was a joy to watch in full flight. Great action, pace, variety, skill and stamina, he had all. He bowled reverse swing to deadly effect, he was one of the greatest fast bowlers of his time.”
His former captain and one of the legends of fast bowling who took Waqar under his wings and nursed him to reach the heights, Imran Khan aptly described him, as a ‘thinking cricketer and at his peak the most destructive bowler the game had seen’.
“Pakistan must utilize his talent and acquire his services as a bowling coach because he can give back what he earned from the game,” Imran said.
Many are still fo the view that he was undoubtedly the finest exponent of fast bowling in the games history. However, Waqar was also the one who made headlines in controversy as well.
On the 1992 tour of England he along with Wasim Akram was accused of ball tampering. Later, when these other allegations, including those of match-fixing in league with other team-mates refused to die, he was also investigated by Justice Mohammad Qayum. Waqar always denied the charges.
Following the World Cup debacle, Waqar returned to the domestic scene earlier this year when he played in few domestic first-class matches. However, he sorely lacked the form and fitness that had brought him fame and fortune. In 228 first-class matches from 1987-88 to 2003-2004 Waqar took 956 wickets at an average of 22.33, with best figures of 8 for 17.
A legendary fast bowler of his generation, Waqar Younis bade farewell to the game he loved and dominated for more than a decade. Along with his equally illustrious partner, Wasim Akram, the two formed the most potent pair of fast bowlers the world had seen in a long time.
