I'm currently reading Shoaib Akhter's biography "Controversially yours", and while reading it I was really touched by his modest childhood. He mentions on more than one occasion that his mother tried her best to make ends meet and that his father's salary was meagre. To top this, he was from a suburb of Rawalpindi, Morgah. Another interesting anecdote described is when he sleeps on a footpath in Lahore. These were certainly new things for me as I had always seen him as an arrogant, indisciplined fast bowler.
On the other hand, we have Salman Butt. Educated from Beachonhouse school system (an elitist institution) and belonging to a well-off family.
Salman Butt was sentenced to a 30 month jail term this year after he was found guilty of spot fixing in the Lord's Test. Shoaib, on the other hand, was always blamed for being indisciplined. But he was never, even by his biggest critics, blamed for match fixing. Never was Shoaib found lacking commitment.
Hence, while going through his book, I realized that there was another side to Shoaib Akhter, a side which was never revealed by the media. This has led to an increase in the respect I had for Shoaib. As he says in his book, "a man doesn't have to be a saint to do good things."
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| Rawalpindi: The fastest bowler in the World |
Salman Butt was sentenced to a 30 month jail term this year after he was found guilty of spot fixing in the Lord's Test. Shoaib, on the other hand, was always blamed for being indisciplined. But he was never, even by his biggest critics, blamed for match fixing. Never was Shoaib found lacking commitment.
Hence, while going through his book, I realized that there was another side to Shoaib Akhter, a side which was never revealed by the media. This has led to an increase in the respect I had for Shoaib. As he says in his book, "a man doesn't have to be a saint to do good things."
