Wasim Akram hits out at former teammates in memoir; calls Rashid Latif “lobbyist” and Aamir Sohail “zombie figure”
Former Pakistan captain Wasim Akram has lashed out at ex-teammates Rashid Latif and Aamir Sohail in his autobiography “Sultan: A Memoir”. While he referred to Latif as a “lobbyist”, he termed Sohail a “zombie figure”.
Akram has taken a dig at a number of his former Pakistan teammates in his book. He has also hit out at former captain Saleem Malik, claiming he was negative, selfish and treated Akram like a servant. He even alleged that Malik demanded massages from him and ordered the left-arm seamer to clean his clothes and boots.
In the latest revelation from the book, Akram targeted two former captains. A report by Cricket Pakistan quoted an excerpt from the former cricketer’s autobiography. Akram wrote about Latif:
"The lobbyists were at work. In July 2000, Rashid Latif gave an interview to The Sunday Telegraph in which he claimed to have been offered £15,000 to ensure Pakistan were bowled out for under 300 in the 1996 Lord's Test. And who knows? Maybe he had. But had he told me, his captain, at the time? No. Had he reported it to his coach or manager? No. Had he told Qayyum? No. Amazingly, these stories only ever came out when he wanted attention."
On former opener Sohail, the 56-year-old added:
"I was publicly reinstated as captain for the DMC Trophy in Toronto. The clamour for change was satisfied by a new coach, Wasim Raja, and new selectors: Wasim's brother Ramiz, Naushad Ali and Abdur Raquib. They recalled, after his tireless lobbying, the zombie figure of Aamir Sohail.”
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Both Sohail and Akram were key members of the Pakistan team that lifted the 1992 ODI World Cup in Australia.
“Waqar was not in our best XI” - Akram targets former bowling partner
It is no secret that despite being one of the most successful bowling pairs in cricket history, Akram and Waqar Younis did not share a good camaraderie during their playing days.
In his memoir, the former has taken a swipe at his former bowling partner as well. An excerpt from the book reads:
"Waqar, by then (2003) was not in our best XI. He was made captain because of Tauqir, and Tauqir was a nuisance. Shoaib, for example, took it into his head to contact Tauqir directly with a request that he be joined by his own doctor, Tauseef Razzaq.”
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Post-retirement, the two Pakistani legends have mended fences and are quite amicable with each other during their commentary and panel discussion stints.