Former Pakistani pacer Shoaib Akhtar has expressed his opinion on out-of-favor Pakistan cricketer Mohammad Sami. Hailing the right-arm pacer, Akhtar feels Sami could have been at par with Bowling legend and fellow countrymen Wasim Akram. Akhtar has heaped praise Sami’s ability to use the old ball against the tailenders which is similar to Wasim Akram.

Speaking with Cricket Pakistan, Shoaib Akhtar said, “Sami’s aggression with the old ball made him very deceptive and enabled him to hit the batsmen’s pads in front of the stumps 99 percent of the time. Sami’s aggression with the old ball made him very deceptive and enabled him to hit the batsmen’s pads in front of the stumps 99 percent of the time.”

ALSO READ: Ashton Agar Includes 2 Indians in His All-Time World XI

Akhtar feels that Sami could have picked 400 international wickets easily if there wasn’t a problem with the pacer’s action.

“Sami could have easily picked up 400 wickets and be par with the right-arm version of Wasim Akram. When Sami used to run in fast, it would disrupt his bowling action towards the end and he would concede a lot of runs,” Akhtar  said.

Shoaib Akhtar also spoke on Sami’s action. He feels that Sami’s seam and arm moment will be back on the right track with controlled aggression.

“But when he used to bowl with a normal action and controlled aggression, his arm and seam would fall at the right place. When he bowled with controlled bowling action in New Zealand, he was unplayable,” he added.

ALSO READ: Ian Gould Recalls ‘War Like’ Test Match Between India and Australia

Sami introduced himself at the international stage back in 2001 when he made his against New Zealand. The right-arm pacer also made his ODI debut in the same year. Pakistan Cricket regarded Sami’s high talent and believed he could be the next big thing. Unfortunately, Sami hasn’t made an international appearance since his last outing against Australia in the 2016 T20 World Cup.