KARACHI, 31 August — Wasim Akram is in the limelight again. The 35-year-old former Pakistan skipper has spent the best part of the last two decades representing his country on the cricket field and has achieved the sort of feats which an ordinary cricketer can only accomplish in his dreams.
But still Wasim refuses to give up.
He wants to continue being at the helm of the Pakistan team apparently oblivious of the fact that his fan base is shrinking and his critics’ circles is getting bigger each time he performs badly.
These are not the best of times for the demon fast bowler who was once the scourge of batsmen all over the world.
It hasn’t been his day, his week, his month or even his year — except for one hot and humid August day in Karachi in which he was able to give his fading cricketing career a new lease of life.
In a trial match primarily organized for the veteran to prove his form and fitness, Wasim used his vast experience more than anything else to take three wickets in the two-day game played at the National Stadium.
Wasim was back in the fray though he was almost written off after being not considered in a list of 27 announced by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) earlier this summer. The list was of the probables for the Pakistan team that was to play the inaugural match of the Asian Test Championship against minnows Bangladesh in Multan. It seemed at that time as if Wasim’s illustrious career was over.
But Wasim had other ideas.
With his somewhat forceful appearance in the trials match, Wasim managed to get himself included in a new package of 16 finalized for the Asian Test Championship that also features Sri Lanka.
Wasim is a survivor, unlike some of the stars of his generation.
He swam while many others sunk when match-fixing scandals rocked the cricket world. He was alleged to be one of the key figures in the betting controversy but somehow he managed to continue as the cricket world saw top stars like South African skipper Hansie Cronje and Indian star Muhammad Azharuddin bow out in disgrace.
As if the match-fixing allegations were not enough, Wasim’s form was hit by a lean patch — an unusual thing for the all-rounder who has probably won more matches for Pakistan than any other cricketer. Wasim has been somewhat toothless as a bowler and unreliable as a batsman in most of international appearances in recent seasons and God knows when was the last time he won a match for his team.
These are certainly bad times for Wasim. But it seems that the only one who refuses to agree with this is the man himself.
While most people believe that age has finally caught up with him and it was time for him to quit in a respectable manner, Wasim says he can continue till the 2003 World Cup. Quite a tall claim for a man who looks fat, slow and harmless on the field with another minus point of being a seen as destabilizing factor for the team since he was stripped of captaincy a couple of years back.
All that Wasim has to say in his defense is that he has taken over 400 wickets in both Test and One-Day International arenas and now he just wants to overtake Indian legend Kapil Dev who once held the record of the highest number of wickets in Test cricket (434).
Kapil’s record has been broken by West Indian Courtney Walsh who has crossed the 500-wicket barrier but that has failed to deter Wasim.
Wasim knows there is no way he could surpass Walsh so he has set his sights on Kapil’s record of being the highest wicket-taker from Asia. He knows most Pakistanis will want him to cross a mark that was set by an Indian. And he knows that it is within his reach. Wasim has already taken 414 wickets in a 102 Tests and only needs 21 more to overtake Kapil.
But the question is how many more matches and more disappointments will it take Wasim before he achieves that landmark.
His last Test appearance was in England earlier this summer and that was a series the Manchester-based star will prefer to forget.
In the three-match series Wasim could just manage to take five wickets - an awful show by a bowler whose strike rate was once considered among the best of all time.
If Wasim’s England show is any yardstick than surely he will have to continue playing till 2003 to get ahead of Kapil in the bowlers’ hall of fame! Can Pakistan afford to continue playing Wasim just because he can achieve a personal landmark? Being a fan of Wasim Akram one would like to say yes but then being a fan of Pakistan cricket one will have to say no.
Pakistan are widely considered to be the most talented side in the world but still appear to be a bunch of under-achievers. They have lost to teams like lowly-rated Zimbabwe at home and could just manage to draw an away series against England — a side that was thrashed mercilessly by Steve Waugh’s Australians just months later.
One of the biggest reasons for Pakistan’s failure especially in the Test arena is that either they expose youngsters to the rigors of international cricket too early or they persist with old foxes like Wasim for too long.
It is obvious that players like Wasim and even the present skipper Waqar Younis are over the hill so is the team’s star opener Saeed Anwar. But for one reason or the other the PCB has opted to continue with them.
Even when the board’s official sat down a few weeks ago to decide the team against visiting Bangladesh — a side that so far does not deserve to be a part of the elite group of Test nations — they preferred to include Wasim, Waqar and Saeed in the list of 16.
Pakistan could have easily managed without these senior players. They could have still beaten Bangladesh by an innings and 200 runs without them.
They could have given Test caps to some of the youngsters who are the future of Pakistan cricket. But the PCB continues to live in the past though in the meantime it is clear that it also wants to take a step into the future. The axing of Wasim from the list of 27 was a clear signal that the board wants to end this chapter but then the player’s inclusion in the final 16 was a proof of the fact that its officials are not strong enough to take such decisions. Either they do not have enough faith in their young players or they are incapable of taking any bold decisions.
With their actions, the PCB bosses contradict themselves.
On the one hand the Board’s chairman Lt. Gen. Tauqir Zia keeps on repeating that there is a lot of talent in the country and that he wants to build a young team for the future but on the other hand his hand-picked team of selectors continues to keep faith in old horses.
Its time for the PCB to decide once and for all whether it really wants to build a young team for the 2003 World Cup in South Africa or it will prefer to have its aging stars in the side till then and even beyond.
It’s true that cricketers like Wasim, Waqar and Saeed cannot easily be replaced but then there comes a time in every player’s life when he is simply unable to deliver.
There are so many examples. We have seen a great batsman like Majid Khan failing to score even a few runs to achieve a personal landmark. Then there was Zaheer Abbas — once called the run-machine failing to score anymore no matter how hard he tried. Then more recently we have the example of a man like Javed Miandad. It was only age that could have beaten Miandad into submission and it finally did.
Wasim Akram is going through a similar phase. Though he can still take wickets on his day but his best is now far behind him. And everybody including Wasim knows that very well. To be just in the limelight is one thing and to be in the limelight as a hero is another. Wasim should not forget that he was once a hero and must avoid the day when he is finally shed as a burden.
