Wasim Akram is not just one of the greatest Pakistan cricketers of all time but one of the greatest in the world of all time and he was great with both bat and ball in hand. Wasim Akram played cricket for 19 years from 1984-2003 and he left cricket with more than 900+ international wickets and almost 6000 international runs in his career. We will talk about his detailed records below.
Wasim Akram played 104 Test matches for Pakistan and in those Matches he scored 2898 test runs for Pakistan with a highest score of 257* and he still holds the record for hitting the most sixes in a test match innings with 12 sixes in that innings. He took 414 test wickets at an incredible average of 23.62 with 25 Five wicket hauls and 5 times 10 wickets in an innings. In the ODI format he played 356 ODIs for Pakistan and he scored 3717 runs and he is just the second bowler in ODI History to take more than 500 ODI wickets with 502 ODI wickets in his career with 6 Five wicket hauls in his ODI career. Let’s look at the Top 5 Best bowling performances of Wasim Akram.
4/60 and 7/119 vs New Zealand (1994)
The first performance we will be talking about is this incredible performance against New Zealand at Wellington in 1994 where Wasim Akram alone destroyed New Zealand with the ball and took 11 wickets in the match. In the first innings when New Zealand was batting he took 4/60 in 24 overs and New Zealand were bowled out for 175 and then in the 3rd innings of the match when it looked like New Zealand were getting back in the game it was Wasim Akram again who Bowled his heart out for Pakistan and took 7/119 and that allowed Pakistan to win the match by an innings and 12 runs.
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6/91 vs West Indies (1986)
To produce this level of bowling performance against the best Cricket team ever assembled when only he was just 2 years into his international career deserves a mention on this list. This young left arm fast bowler ripped apart the famed West Indies batting line-up and took 6 wickets for 96 runs in 25 overs and his Wickets included Gordon Greenidge and Viv Richards among others and this performance made him get noticed in the cricketing world.
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6/62 and 5/98 vs Australia (1990)
Even though Pakistan lost this match at the MCG, this outstanding bowling performance by Wasim Akram is still remembered as one of the best ever by a Pakistani in Australia. He took 6 wickets in the first innings when Australia were batting and got them all out for 223 in a splendid effort and then in the 3rd innings of the test match he again was the lone warrior for his nation as he took another 5 Wickets in this innings by giving away 98 runs and established himself as the best in the world.
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5/19 vs New Zealand (1992)
This is one of his best ever ODI bowling performances as the match was improbable for Pakistan to win and yet one man ensured that his nation won. New Zealand had a modest target of just 159 to win and then Wasim Akram wielded his magic with the ball and just tore apart the New Zealand batting line-up and took 5 wickets by giving away only 19 runs in 9 overs meaning an economy rate of just a shade over 2 per over and New Zealand were Bowled out for 108 runs. This was a truly memorable performance by Wasim Akram.
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3/49 vs England (1992)
Probably the most important bowling performance of his career has been saved for last because this was the 1992 World Cup final and Wasim Akram first scored 33 runs from just 19 balls with the bat to give Pakistan a good total and then with the ball he was the star of the final taking 3 important wickets of Ian Botham and Allan Lamb among others and Pakistan won the World Cup by 22 runs and Wasim Akram was the man of the final and a national hero forever.
