The Asia Cup is nearing with six teams participating in the continental tournament. India will play the first match against Pakistan, who are in the same group. It will be a match to witness and India will play against Pakistan after a year. The last time both the countries played against each other was in the World Cup 2021, where Pakistan defeated India.
In remembrance of the two iconic teams, Star Sports shared a video on their YouTube channel called “Frenemies”. The video featured a conversation between legendary fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar and Virender Sehwag. They talked about their experience in the 1999 match in Mohali, where Akthar aggressively dismissed Sourav Ganguly.
Shoaib Akhtar often known as Rawalpindi Express said that he was told to target the head and ribs of the Indian batsmen, especially Ganguly. “We had decided to target Ganguly on his ribs. In our team meeting, it was discussed how I will try to hit batters. I had asked them, ‘Do I not dismiss them?’ but they said, ‘No. You have a lot of paces. You just try to hit the batters and we will take care of the wickets,” Akhtar revealed their history.
The Rawalpindi Express did manage to hit Ganguly on the ribs with a short-pitched delivery. Though in later years, Akhtar always said that Sourav was the bravest batsman that he bowled to. After the injury, many players were scared to face Akhtar due to his aggressive style of bowling.
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‘Was Told to Target Sourav Ganguly’s Ribs’- Shoaib Akhtar Talks about his Delivery in 1999 Mohali ODI
Shoaib Akhtar later said, “People used to say that he was scared to face fast bowling, he was afraid to face me. I think all of that was rubbish. Sourav Ganguly was the bravest batsman I ever bowled to, the only opener who could face me with the new ball.”
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