WARNE’S comments about some of the other outstanding Pakistani players of his time are also worth reading.

“Waqar was an amazing bowler with great skills. His legacy to the game is in releasing some of the mysteries of reverse swing. He was the perfect bowler to have in the final overs of a one-day game. He did not have the same whippy bouncer like Wasim, he was a ‘skiddier’ who aimed at our toes rather than on your ribs. He broke my left toe three times. In tandem with Wasim he was just brilliant.”

“About Shoaib we always felt in the dressing room that he was worried about how quickly he was bowling rather than outthinking the batsmen. He had few incredible spells against us but he is inconsistent.

Perhaps his nickname ‘Rawalpindi Express’ I should describe as a stage name because part of his problem has been the desire to be a showman.”

“Mushtaq Ahmed bowls a googly better than anybody else. I showed him how to bowl a flipper on his 1995 Australian tour and he taught me the googly. He started to pick up our wickets with those flippers in that series. His googly in the World Cup final of 1992 against Graeme Hick was the best ball I have ever seen. It amazes me that he did not play more Tests, even taking into account the occasional madness of Pakistan selectors.”

“Saeed Anwar could adapt to any conditions and any style of bowling. He had amazing timing and a touch of calmness and grace about him. You remember his style not his figures. McGrath used to moan because Anwar’s defensive push could go for four. His footwork against spin was precise and spot on. He was an intelligent batsman.”

“Inzamam was a bear of a man who looked as if he was batting with a toothpick. The stumps always seemed small. He was a strong player against pace but didn’t do well in Australia and South Africa. He was a good hooker and puller. We always planned to give him a bouncer followed by a yorker. But he was a brave player. He developed into a good captain but he went too far at The Oval in 2006. Having made his point he should have brought back the players instead of forfeiting the Test which brought lot of bad publicity for cricket.”

“Moin Khan wasn’t the best ’keeper nor as good a batsman like Gilchrist, Healy, Flower or Stewart but he was still an easy pick for my 100. His value goes beyond his figures. He was a true fighter and a bloke who you would want to have in your team. In 1994, Wasim and Waqar pulled out from Lahore Test shortly before start with injuries.

The politics of Pakistan cricket went over my head at that stage of my career and I still didn’t understand all the ins and outs by the time I retired 13 years later. Moin in that Test stuck it out with a gutsy hundred. I would have gone for Moin ahead of Rashid Latif as he was the best player in crisis time.”

“Shahid Afridi is called ‘Boom Boom’ in Pakistan but the way Shahid went about his batting, he could easily have been Boom or Bust. You could hardly keep your eyes off him when he was in full flow, in fact you could not keep your eyes off him when he struggled because he would still look to play big shots.

“For entertainment value he is in my 100. He once hit Symonds at Perth for a six estimated as being a hundred and fifty meter long in an ODI. He could be frustrating to bowl to. His strike rate of over one run a ball is the best in the history of ODIs. His great strength, apart form his physical power, is his conviction. As a spinner he could bowl his faster ball as quick as McGrath.”

“Mohammad Yousuf belted me for three straight sixes in the Melbourne Test of 2004. He clearly wanted to lead by example as a stand-in captain. I noticed that he played some of his best innings when the chips were down. He does not really appear to whack, but his timing is so good that he can stroke the ball sweetly enough to get to the boundary. He is a very strong off-side batsman and looks to play late, good method in England if the ball is moving.”

There are many gems in other pages of the book and remarkable observations of a player who was arguably the greatest wrist spinner to have played the game.

Concluded