Shoaib Akhtar: “I hope someone breaks my record. I will personally congratulate that player when it happens”
Image courtesy of: Zimbio
Pakistan pace ace Shoaib Akhtar said he hopes someone breaks his record for the fastest ball bowled in international cricket.
The Rawalpindi Express bowled a delivery at 161.3 kph (100.2 mph) during the 2003 World Cup.
A few bowlers have come close to that speed, including the Australia trio of Brett Lee, Shaun Tait and Mitchell Starc.
Should the day come that someone surpasses his record, Akhtar said he will “personally congratulate” them.
“I hope someone breaks my record. I will personally congratulate that player when it happens,” he told Hum News as quoted by Cricwick.
He noted that when attempting to bowl the quickest delivery, he was aware of the fact that it could have caused him to get injured, but he was intent on getting his name in the record books.
“I wanted to get it done and dusted. I got jabbed twice in both of my knees which made them numb,” he said.
“Despite fears of suffering an injury, I took that risk and broke the record. Almost 20 years have passed and that record is still intact.”