"I wanted to get him out on the first ball and that happened": Shoaib Akhtar recalls dismissing Sachin Tendulkar for a golden duck

Ex-Pakistan cricketer Shoaib Akhtar was always the center of attention, be it while clocking 100mph and bowling exceptionally fast or getting involved in an unseemly controversy.

In a recent chat with BBC, Shoaib Akhtar talked about his journey towards bowling quicker, his fiery duels with other cricketers and the evolution of the game as a whole.

Commenting on the pace with which he bowled during his heyday, Shoaib Akhtar said he always wanted to bowl as fast as possible and that the training to clock 100mph was immense. He revealed that he used to run with bulky weights set on his back:

I used to bowl with a heavier object from 26 yards: Shoaib Akhtar

"I ran with 170kg weights on my back, taking 20kg off after every 100-meter sprint. I also used to bowl from 26 yards with something much heavier than a cricket ball. When I came back to the 22 yards, I was about 6km/h (3.7mph) quicker”.

Shoaib recalls an instance in the ICC Super Series where Andrew Flintoff took a dig at the pacer’s fitness, and said:

“You were born unfit, you look like a Tarzan but you bowl like a Jane”.

Andrew Flintoff then recalled in a later interview that he had his stumps uprooted by the speedster some balls later. Former English cricketer Kevin Pietersen, in an interview, recalled the ODI series and remarked at the sheer pace with which Shoaib Akhtar used to bowl.

Shoaib Akhtar also mentioned himself as someone who always wanted a challenge. He recalls a face-off with the Indian legend Sachin Tendulkar where he dismissed the little master first ball.

“He was in his own attitude and I was in my attitude. But I wanted to get him out on the first ball and that happened”, Shoaib Akhtar stated.

The paceman retired with 178 Test wickets and 247 ODI wickets to his name and tons of memories left for the fans to look savour.