Shoaib Akhtar reveals reason behind never captaining Pakistan

Shoaib Akhtar. (Photo Source: Shoaib Akhtar / Twitter)

Former Pakistan cricketer Shoaib Akhtar has finally revealed as to why he never wished to captain Pakistan, even though he was actually offered the role and also had the potential in him to be one of the very great captains for Pakistan.

Shoaib Akhtar made his debut for Pakistan in 1997, and in his entire career duration he appeared for 46 Tests, 163 ODIs and only 15 T20Is. He still owns the world record for delivering the fastest ever delivery in cricket history, clocking a massive 161.3 km per hour (100.2 miles per hour) during the Cricket World Cup of 2003 against England.

I wasn’t fit enough: Shoaib Akhtar opens up on declining captaincy

“I wasn’t fit enough. I could play three matches out of five. I was offered captaincy in 2002, but then I would’ve played only 1.5-2 years (if I played all matches),” the 47-year-old said as quoted by Pakistan Cricket.

The former pace-bowler spoke candidly about the many happenings during his tenure. He revealed a very shocking point, wherein he stated that he had all the backing of his teammates back then, and he was also at the peak of his form, but the PCB management was not at all in a proper state to function. There was massive mismanagement and miscommunication, and the board never got in proper shape to handle the players.

On his own part, he said that physically and mentally he wasn’t quite prepared to undertake the captaincy post. He believed it was a huge responsibility and he couldn’t possibly accept such a role just for the sake of it.

“I was supported by my teammates, but the board was very unstable. There was mismanagement all over the board. Pakistan itself had faced mismanagement at that time.”

Shoaib Akhtar is regarded as one of the greatest cricketers from Pakistan and one of the greatest pace bowlers in cricket. Unfortunately though, his illustrious career was cut short by a string of injury phases, which ultimately led him to hang his boots post the 2011 World Cup.

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