Former Pakistan speedster Shoaib Akhtar feels Rohit Sharma’s Test career will fly high from now on after his century in both the innings of his debut as opener while fast bowler Mohammed Shami can become the king of reverse swing. Akhtar also said that no Pakistani pacer has asked his advice while Shami has been keeping in touch with him regarding his bowling.

“Rohit Sharma is hitting hundred after hundred and I have been saying that Rohit should be in the Indian Test team. From here, he will become a great Test player. Rohit the Test player will grow bigger,” Shoaib Akhtar said on his youtube channel.

Akhtar said that once he had advised Shami, who played an important role in India’s big win over South Africa in the first Test, to try and use the reverse swing as a weapon.

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“After India’s (50-over) World Cup disappointment, Shami called me up one day and said he was feeling sad that he could not do well for India. I told him not to lose heart but maintain fitness. The home series is coming and you will do well I said. I told Shami that I want him to become a tearaway pacer, running through batting line-ups. He has seam and swing, besides that he has reverse swing which very few bowlers in the subcontinent have. I told him you can become king of reverse swing,” said Akhtar.

“Now, you see what he has done, he has got wickets from a docile pitch (in Visakhaptnam). I am very happy for him,” said the 44-year-old who took 178 wickets from 46 Tests between 1997 and 2007. Sadly, our Pakistani fast bowlers don’t ask me how they can improve their bowling but the Indian bowlers like Shami are doing that. It is a sad scenario as far as my country is concern,” he concluded.