Former cricketer Shoaib Akhtar made an interesting observation while comparing the pacers of India and Pakistan. The 46-year-old lauded the progress of Indian seam bowling in the recent years but feels the energy to be missing when compared to their Pakistani counterparts.
“There is a difference between Pakistan and India. The Indians are producing good fast bowlers, but what they are lacking is the rare energy - that anger on your face, that attitude that I am going to just kill you," noted Akhtar while speaking on a podcast alongside Australia legend Brett Lee.
Akhtar believes the difference between the two is due to “the environment and food.”
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Explaining the reason behind Pakistan's dominance in the fast bowling department, Akhtar picked the idols as one of the main reason behind the attitude.
“The idols that we have, the food, the environment, the attitude. At the same time, you have people like me who are full of energy. It gives us pleasure to bowl quick,” said Akhtar.
{{/usCountry}}“The idols that we have, the food, the environment, the attitude. At the same time, you have people like me who are full of energy. It gives us pleasure to bowl quick,” said Akhtar.
{{/usCountry}}He also mentioned that people in Pakistan strictly follow a non-vegetarian diet, which he claims is one of the reason the bowlers in Pakistan “run like lions.”
“You become what you eat, right? My nation eats lots of animals and we end up being like animals. When it comes to fast bowlers, we just run in like lions," he further explained.