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Greatest Pakistani fast bowler - Wasim or Imran?

Greatest Pakistani fast bowler?


  • Total voters
    102

ret

International Debutant
That's a nice clip but by then Imran was hardly the bowler he was known for.
you hardly saw such dip in form with Wasim ....one of the reasons why i rate him as Pak's best :)

What is more refreshing about the cricket those days is - Kings hits Imran for Six, starts walking casually towards the bowler as if nothing happened, they exchanged words, laughed and again ready to face/bowl the next ball with same competitiveness
on the contrary, Imran appears to be pissed after his conversation with Richards
 

Shaggy Alfresco

State Captain
yep, but how many fast bowlers get swept like spinners? ....may be he was too predictable with his incoming deliveries *wondering*
Yeah, I agree, Imran must have been a crap bowler if he was swept by the greatest one day batsman in history.
 

ret

International Debutant
Yeah, I agree, Imran must have been a crap bowler if he was swept by the greatest one day batsman in history.
what amazes me is how saying that Imran got swept is translated as Imran is a crap bowler by some 8-)

if you had any doubt then the thread's title 'Greatest' was enough to give a clue .... clearly, we are debating which one is the 'greatest' and since any 'who's greatest' comparison is close, it's the minor things that separates the greats, imo
 

Fusion

Global Moderator
what amazes me is how saying that Imran got swept is translated as Imran is a crap bowler by some 8-)

if you had any doubt then the thread's title 'Greatest' was enough to give a clue .... clearly, we are debating which one is the 'greatest' and since any 'who's greatest' comparison is close, it's the minor things that separates the greats, imo
Are you seriously suggesting that Imran getting swept by Viv proves that Wasim was better? I’m sure I can find a delivery, if I looked hard enough, where Wasim looked ordinary against a great batsman.

Incidentally, I have firmly changed my mind on the subject of this poll. I voted for Wasim back then, but now would comfortably place Imran ahead.
 

SJS

Hall of Fame Member
SJS you might have seen Imran. I want your opinion as well.
At his peak he looked absolutely unplayable. He was fast, had great control and swung the ball late, very late. Bowled a great bouncer with no apparent effort which kept coming at you.

I can understand the younger fan's fixation with their heroes but no Pakistani bowler from the 1960's (when I started watching Test cricket) till date comes close to Imran at his best.
 

ret

International Debutant
Are you seriously suggesting that Imran getting swept by Viv proves that Wasim was better? I’m sure I can find a delivery, if I looked hard enough, where Wasim looked ordinary against a great batsman.

Incidentally, I have firmly changed my mind on the subject of this poll. I voted for Wasim back then, but now would comfortably place Imran ahead.
What I m suggesting is that I have seen an ineffective Imran a lot more than an ineffective Wasim .... ofc, in their prime both of them were devastating .... i cannot imagine anyone sweeping Wasim whether in his prime or not

As an Indian fan, I usually had fingers in my mouth when Wasim was bowling coz of his ability to change the game than any other Pak bowler .... and ofc I have seen Wasim getting smashed be it in Sharjah or the 03 WC but you will usually see him bowl a few unplayable balls in between too

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jG6pAcrxG_k

here is a good example, where we see Imran and a young Wasim bowling together .... which to some extent shows why I rank Wasim as Pak's best

ofc, you can't go wrong with picking Imran, who as a cricketer is the best Pak has produced. But purely as a bowler, I rate Wasim as Pak's best
 
At his peak he looked absolutely unplayable. He was fast, had great control and swung the ball late, very late. Bowled a great bouncer with no apparent effort which kept coming at you.

I can understand the younger fan's fixation with their heroes but no Pakistani bowler from the 1960's (when I started watching Test cricket) till date comes close to Imran at his best.
You know SJS is the guy who has seen most of the players. I rate him very high for his approach. Now i am more than 100% sure that Imran was better than Wasim.
 

Anil

Hall of Fame Member
Incidentally, I have firmly changed my mind on the subject of this poll. I voted for Wasim back then, but now would comfortably place Imran ahead.
yeah i also voted for wasim back then, but in retrospect would place imran ahead, although not by much...
 

ret

International Debutant
I can understand the younger fan's fixation with their heroes but no Pakistani bowler from the 1960's (when I started watching Test cricket) till date comes close to Imran at his best.
just wondering, how did you get to see the games as I guess that there was little telecast during the 80s of games that didn't involve India
 

Richard

Cricket Web Staff Member
you hardly saw such dip in form with Wasim ....
Yeah, nah, of course, Wasim never had his last 5 Tests where he managed a sum-total of 7 wickets.

(Bangladesh not included here BTW - he also had 2 wicketless games against them after this)
 

Sanz

Hall of Fame Member
Incidentally, I have firmly changed my mind on the subject of this poll. I voted for Wasim back then, but now would comfortably place Imran ahead.
yeah i also voted for wasim back then, but in retrospect would place imran ahead, although not by much...
Just Curious - What is it that you have discovered about Imran Vs. Akram that you didn't know before.

Having read your opinions on Imran Vs. Akram in last few months, I was kinda surprised that you two voted for Akram in 2006.
 

SJS

Hall of Fame Member
just wondering, how did you get to see the games as I guess that there was little telecast during the 80s of games that didn't involve India
There was enough to see from the India Pakistan games itself .
 

Fusion

Global Moderator
Just Curious - What is it that you have discovered about Imran Vs. Akram that you didn't know before.

Having read your opinions on Imran Vs. Akram in last few months, I was kinda surprised that you two voted for Akram in 2006.
For me, it was going back and viewing as many matches as I could of Imran bowling. I pretty much saw Wasim’s entire career, and after watching Imran’s footage, I believe Imran to be better. Also, I came to place greater importance on Imran’s successes against the West Indies, one of the best teams of all time. That’s not to say that Wasim’s record is bad against the good teams of his era, I just think Imran’s feats are more impressive. Imran’s 40 wickets for 13.95 in the ‘82 series against a formidable Indian lineup on dead wickets is as devastating a spell as any fast bowler in history. I don’t think I’ve seen Wasim have a similar series in his career (not just talking about total wickets, but the overall performance).
 

funnygirl

State Regular
how many of you guys have seen Imran Khan at his best? I know all you you might have seen Waseem at his peak. I have seen both being a Pakistan. Wasim was a by product of Imran Khan. TBH Waqar was even better than Waseem. Waseem was good for one day bowling. He had a good economy rate. I would love to have the feedback of those guys who have seen both wasim and imran at their best. I don't have any doubt in my mind that Imran was definitely better.
Thats a huge injustice to Wasim's talent . He brought to international scene by Miandad straight from street literally (thats without much domestic experience) .And he took a 10 fer even before Imran trained him any thing .Imran got a talent to nourish ,he did .Otherwise Imran can't make a Mohammed Sami into a champion .U know what i meant .Waqar being better ,well statistically he struggled against two best batting sides Australia and India . For ability ,i think Wasim was better than him and ''most of the batsmen faced '' him think so .
 
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funnygirl

State Regular
Just Curious - What is it that you have discovered about Imran Vs. Akram that you didn't know before. Having read your opinions on Imran Vs. Akram in last few months, I was kinda surprised that you two voted for Akram in 2006.
Got brain washed by the geniuses of CW :laugh:
 

Fusion

Global Moderator
Got brain washed by the geniuses of CW :laugh:
Yup. All of my opinions are based on what the "geniuses" of CW guide me toward. I'm about to open a thread asking them whether Bradman really was that good. Let's see what they say (I hope they say "yes", otherwise all these years I was clearly smoking crack thinking the bugger can play).
 

nightprowler10

Global Moderator
Wasim Akram, just. Imran has his own place in the annals of cricket history and he worked very very hard to get that status, but I'll always choose Wasim over Imran as a pure bowler. I idolized him as a kid so I suppose you can call it bias.
 

funnygirl

State Regular
Yup. All of my opinions are based on what the "geniuses" of CW guide me toward. I'm about to open a thread asking them whether Bradman really was that good. Let's see what they say (I hope they say "yes", otherwise all these years I was clearly smoking crack thinking the bugger can play).
Geez ,overreaction .I was fooling around .Each and every one can have an opinion .But how it changes each year is what i said in a lighter way .:).u r a knowldgeable person ,every one here knows that .So what is the confusion if i said something .
 

FRAZ

International Captain
Wasim Akram, just. Imran has his own place in the annals of cricket history and he worked very very hard to get that status, but I'll always choose Wasim over Imran as a pure bowler. I idolized him as a kid so I suppose you can call it bias.
:laugh:
 
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