5 popular fast bowlers whose lookalikes went viral ft. Shoaib Akhtar and Lockie Ferguson
Fast bowlers have a massive fan following in the world of cricket. A lot of fans enjoy watching quality fast bowling in cricket. If a bowler has genuine pace and he can swing the ball, then he can trouble even the greatest batters in the world.
The personalities of fast bowlers have changed in the modern era. Previously, the fast bowlers would have a big moustache and long hair. As they would charge down the field coming to bowl at the batters, there would be a sense of fear in the minds of the batters.
In the modern era, there is no major difference in the looks of batters, spin bowlers and fast bowlers. Most of the cricketers prefer maintaining a sharp look with well-trimmed hair and beard now, but there are still a few pacers who have their unique look.
Speaking of pace bowlers and their looks, in this listicle, we will look at the top five fast bowlers whose lookalikes went viral on the internet.
#1 Shoaib Akhtar's lookalike from Oman - Mohammad Imran
A video of Oman's domestic level pacer Mohammad Imran recently surfaced on the internet. Imran has the same hairstyle as Shoaib Akhtar. Interestingly, his running style and bowling action are quite similar to The Rawalpindi Express as well.
When his video went viral on social media, some fans even gave him the nickname of 'Baby Akhtar'. However, it is pertinent to note that Akhtar bowled in the range of 150 kmph, while his lookalike from Oman hardly touches the 130 kmph mark.
#2 Lockie Ferguson's lookalike from Lagaan Movie
When Lockie Ferguson sported a new look with a moustache in international cricket, fans were quick to recall the similarity between his and Captain Smith's looks from famous Hindi movie, Lagaan.
Smith captained the English team in the Lagaan movie, which was a blockbuster featuring Aamir Khan. Some fans even joked that Ferguson captained England before playing for New Zealand at the international level.
#3 Brett Lee's lookalike from professional wrestling
Brett Lee was one of the most dangerous fast bowlers of his era. The former Australian pacer would trouble the opposition batters a lot with his express pace and accuracy.
Lee's looks were quite similar to popular Canadian professional wrestler, Chris Jericho. In case you didn't know, Jericho is a former WWE champion. He works for AEW now.
#4 Jasprit Bumrah's lookalike from Pakistan
The ICC World XI visited Pakistan in 2017 for the Independence Cup series. Several top names of world cricket like Hashim Amla, Tim Paine, Faf du Plessis, Thisara Perera, Paul Collingwood, and Imran Tahir featured in the World XI side assembled by the ICC. Pakistan won that T20I series 2-1.
During the three-match series, a Pakistani fan went viral on social media as he looked quite similar to Indian fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah. A lot of fans clicked pictures with him at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore.
#5 Lasith Malinga's lookalike from Indian cinema
Lasith Malinga was the backbone of Sri Lanka's bowling attack in white-ball cricket for a long time. Current Sri Lankan pacer, Matheesha Pathirana has a similar bowling action like Malinga's, but his looks are not the same.
Malinga's lookalike is Indian actor Omkar Das Manikpuri. Born in Bhilai, Omkar is known for his work in Peepli (Live) movie. He has also been a part of the movie India's Daughter, released in 2015.