Shoaib Akhtar was born on August 13, 1975, in Rawalpindi. He made his Test debut in November 1997 against the West Indies. His ODI debut came against Zimbabwe in March 1998. Shoaib played his first T20I game against England in August 2006.
Shoaib played a total of 219 International matches for Pakistan and took a total of 438 wickets at an average of 25.02. Shoaib took a total of 16 five-wicket hauls in International and he is among the top 10 wicket-takers for Pakistan in International cricket.
Here are the top 5 bowling performances of Shoaib Akhtar:
1. 11/78 vs New Zealand, Wellington (2003)
In 2003, Pakistan travelled to New Zealand to play a five-match ODI and two-match Test series. The first Test of the series ended in a draw. The second Test was a Boxing Day Test, and New Zealand won the toss and elected to bat. New Zealand was bundled out for 366 runs in the first innings, and Shoaib took five wickets for 48 runs.
Pakistan managed just 196 runs in their first innings. In the second innings, New Zealand could make only 103 runs. Only three batters managed to score a double-digit figure. Shoaib took six wickets for 30 runs in the second innings. It was only the third time Shoaib took six wickets in a Test innings. He won the Player of the Match award for his bowling performance of 11 wickets for 78 runs. It was the last Player of the Match award that Shoaib won in Test cricket. Shoaib still has the best bowling figures by a Pakistani bowler in a Test match in New Zealand.
2. 6/11 vs New Zealand, Lahore (2002)
Shoaib just played two Test matches against New Zealand in his career. He picked three five-wicket hauls in an innings and a 10-wicket haul in a match in his three outings. Shoaib played his first Test match against New Zealand in Lahore in 2002 when New Zealand landed in Pakistan to play a two-match Test series.
In the first Test of the series, Pakistan won the toss and elected to bat. Inzamam-ul-Haq made 329 runs in the first innings and became only the second Pakistani batter to make a triple-century in Test cricket. Pakistan finished with 643 runs on the board. In reply, New Zealand was bundled out for 73 runs. Shoaib bowled his best bowling figures in International cricket in the first innings as he took six wickets for 11 runs.
3. 6/16 vs New Zealand, Karachi (2002)
Shoaib was in the best of his form during the 2002 series against New Zealand. The three-match ODI series was played before the Test series. In the first ODI, Pakistan elected to bat after winning the toss. Pakistan scored 275 runs for the loss of six wickets.
In reply, New Zealand managed just 122 runs before getting bundled out in 30 overs. Shoaib took six wickets for 16 runs in nine overs. It was his best bowling figures in ODIs, and is still the best bowling figures by a Pakistani bowler in ODIs against New Zealand. Shoaib won the Player of the Match award for his bowling performance. It was his third Player of the Match award for Shoaib in ODIs.
4. 5/25 vs Australia, Brisbane (2002)
In 2002, Pakistan toured Australia to play a three-match ODI series. It was the first time Pakistan was playing a bilateral ODI series in Pakistan. Both teams won one game each in the first two matches. The third ODI match was played at Brisbane on June 19.
Pakistan won the toss in the third match and elected to bat. They made 256 runs for the loss of seven wickets. Shoaib picked five wickets for 25 runs in eight overs and bowled a maiden over as well. It is the second-best bowling figures by a Pakistani bowler against Australia in ODIs in Australia. Shoaib won the Player of the Match award for his bowling performance.
5. 5/43 vs South Africa, Durban (1998)
In 1998, Pakistan toured South Africa to play a two-match Test series. The first Test ended in a draw, and then the two teams travelled to Durban to play the second Test. South Africa elected to field after winning the toss. Pakistan made 259 runs in the first innings.
It was Shoaib’s first overseas tour. He took five wickets for 43 runs in 12 overs in South Africa’s first innings. It was the first time Shoaib took a five-wicket haul in International cricket.
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