Living in the fast lane with Shoaib (16 June 1999)

16 June 1999

Living in the fast lane with Shoaib

Trevor Chesterfield

Manchester (England) ­ Not since Australian Jeff Thomson discovered how in the mid-1970s the arm could become a pretty lethal catapult when aiming the ball at a batsman's stumps has a fast bowler attracted as much attention as Pakistan's Shoaib Akhtar.

He has collected a variety of sobriquets; the latest is `Cannonball Express' andf there's also the widely used 'Rawalpindi Express' and `Express Service'. Facing the 23-year-old can be the sort of hair raising encounter which could tun the highlights in some batsmens' hair a lighter shade of grey.

While New Zealand pulled together a more than creditable 241 for seven through a display of solid rather than brilliant batting, it was Shoaib's pace which captivated a packed Old Trafford on a breezy day and a pitch which, if not sluggish, was not your paceman's pradise.

Bounce was low but the run up `just right' as Goldlilocks said about the porridge in the tale of the Three Bears. If you think facing up to a continuous blitz of aggressive fast bowling is a simple matter, give it a twirl. As Dennis Amiss discovered in the Ashes series Down Under in 1974-75 it can be horribly uncomfortable and quite gut-wrenching as well. You come to fear the moment you have to strap on the pads and go out to bat. It can affect, as Amiss once confided, your confidence, and chew at your sub-conscious too if you allow it to dominate your thinking. Facing someone in the fast lane who regularly delivers the ball at speeds between 90 and 93 mph, and trying to play strokes as well can become an interesting exercise.

Unlike Thommo, however, Shoaib's idea today was not to gnaw at the batsmen's confidence but merely to blast the batmen out. At Kingsmead in Durban 16 months ago Shoaib was a bit raw, his pace in need of being harnessed and he was in desperate need of a captain to understand him. He now has the captain and is not so raw. He let the occasional delivery rip through at speed with a bit of overdrive thrown in.

The ball which got rid of Nathan Astle was 91 mph, a no ball in the same over 92 mph, and the reverse swinging yorker which up-rooted New Zealand captain Stephen Fleming's garden furniture was also 92. It was fast stuff, all right.

One of the problems, however, is that Shoaib can be costly in terms of the number of free hits he gives the batsmen. It is one thing to bowl fast, it is another to keep it under control.

The third batsman he blasted out in the New Zealand innings was Chris Harris with the sort of reverse swinging yorker Waqar Younis was known to bowl, demonstrating beautifully concealed pace and swing. It makes for an interesting time for the batsman who can keep it out.