Sachin Tendulkar is widely regarded as one of the best batsmen to have stepped onto the cricket and his numbers in all forms of cricket speak volumes of his prowess. With 34357 runs, the former Indian batting sensation is the highest run-scorer in international cricket also his tally of 100 international centuries is also the most for any player. However, Former Pakistan speedster placed the Master Blaster at the fifth position in his list of top-five batsmen. However, the legendary pacer also gave a solid reason for it which is certainly valid.  Wasim Akram Special: 5/21 vs Australia and Other Memorable Performances by the Legendary Pakistan Pacer.

In his list of top-five batsman, Akram picked West Indies’ legend Sir Vivian Richards at the top spot. “If you talk about a batsman with an unmatched technique, charisma and someone who had a huge impact on the game, it is Sir Vivian Richards. I have played against all the greats from mid-eighties to the nineties to the 2000s, but Viv Richards was a class apart,” Akram said while featuring in former teammate Basit Ali’s YouTube Show.

Talking about Sachin Tendulkar, Akram said that he and his partner-in-crime Waqar Younis didn’t bowl a lot to him in Test cricket and thus, he can’t talk much about the Indian stalwart. “I am keeping Tendulkar aside from this list because we didn’t play Test cricket against him for 10 years. Waqar and I didn’t bowl to him for ten years in Test matches. He came to Pakistan in 1989 as a 16-year old and after that, we played against him in 1999,” said the veteran of 916 international wickets.

“I bowled at him at Sharjah in ODIs but Test cricket is different. No doubt he is one of the greats of the game but as a bowler, I didn’t bowl to him in my peak and that is why it is difficult for me to judge him,” he added.

At number two, Akram chose former New Zealand skipper Martin Crowe. “At number two I will put Martin Crowe because of his sheer technique. At a time when the world had no idea about how to face reverse swing, he played against us. It was a series where Waqar picked up 30 wickets in three matches and I picked up 16 wickets in one and a half matches as I got injured. Crowe had scored two centuries in that series,” he opined.

Brian Lara was the other Caribbean batsman in Akram’s list as the southpaw took the third spot. “At number three I will put ‘the prince’, Brian Lara. He was a quality batsman. He was very different and odd to bowl at. His bat would come from various directions. He was never settled and it was difficult to bowl to him,” Akram said.

For the fourth position, the 54-year-old chose his former teammate Inzamam-ul-Haq and kept Tendulkar at number five. The veteran also said opining anything about the two stars will not be easy for him as he’s not having the experience of bowling against them in red-ball cricket.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 07, 2020 09:46 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).