Book Review: Wasim Akram’s ‘Sultan: A Memoir’ tries to set the record straight

Published : Apr 19, 2023 18:00 IST - 8 MINS READ A quick glance at Wasim Akram’s international career statistics tells you all about his greatness on the pitch. Sultan: A Memoir By Wasim Akram with Gideon Haigh Harper Sport Pages: 304 Price: Rs.699 Such numbers firmly establish Akram as not only Pakistan’s finest exponent of fast bowling but also as one of the most talented all-rounders that country has ever produced. Despite faltering big time in his first stint as Pakistan’s skipper—Akram admits he tried too hard to be like Imran Khan without his “aura and background”—he fares much better the second time around despite allegations of match-fixing casting a dark shadow on the team’s on-field achievements. Considering the current political climate that governs relations between the two neighbours, one can sense both love and longing when Akram says: “For all their occasional excesses, there is simply no cricket public like India’s, and no cricket relationship like Pakistan’s with India.” Leading from the front In a bid to emulate Imran Khan’s feat, Akram also led from the front in the 1999 World Cup where Pakistan began convincingly, then stumbled, before finding its feet to reach the final, only to be beaten by Australia in what remains the most one-sided summit clash in the tournament’s history till date. With the match-fixing saga running in the background, the debilitating defeat raised suspicions back home in Pakistan yet again, which Akram calls out as “chronic national immaturity—the brittle Pakistani arrogance that expects victory and can only explain defeat by claiming a conspiracy.” As the country again undergoes another political churn when army chief Pervez Musharraf takes charge following a military coup, Akram finds himself in the twilight of his career.