Akhtar a must for Pakistan

One of the most exciting moments in a game of cricket is to see a fast bowler tearing in and letting go at opposing batsman who are ducking or weaving trying to avoid the missile of a delivery.

Over the years many countries have produced fast bowlers who were sights to behold, with their superb run ups and excellent jumps at the wicket before delivering.

Most countries used to rely on vicious spinners to win games for them. The dazzlers from the Caribbean changed all that firing pace to dump their opponents.

The 70s and 80s saw the Windies bowling raw pace with some of the finest speed merchants that the game has seen. The names are too numerous to mention. But can we forget the jet pace of Wesly Hall, Roy Gilchrist, Andy Roberts, Michael Holding, Colin Croft, Malcom Marshall and Joel Garner to mention a few.

One of the bowlers carrying this excellent tradition and who was a fearful sight to watch and batsmen to face was that Pakistani 'Rawalpindi Express' Shoaib Akhtar.

Akhtar everytime he ran up to deliver made batsmen shake in the knees. He was not only sheer speed and venom and was deadly accurate. Many are the batsmen who have been struck and would vouch for the devil in him.

One batsman who was felled by Akhtar was the great Brian Lara during a game in the Champions Trophy in England last year. The way Lara was hit unable to read a missile from Akhtar and the manner in which he crumbled to the ground looked frightening.

Thank god Lara did not suffer some permanent damage.

The question on every cricket fans lips is: why is Akhtar not with the touring Pakistanis in the Caribbean?.

When the Pakistanis fronted up to the Indians, Akhtar was recovering from injury. But he rested, recovered quickly and was confident that he would be on the flight to the West Indies.

But it was not so. According to the selectors he was still not fit. But that excuse does not seem to go down with Akhtar's supporters. They reckon that captain Inzamam Ul-Haq is not hitting it off well with the fast bowler or vice versa.

If this is true then it is a sad reflection on those who steer Pakistani cricket. It is accepted that sport is a great leveller. The men who matter should have got them together and made them mend fences and had Akhtar been in the Caribbean he could have given the Windies a dose of their own medicine.

Pakistani batsmen of the past too, suffered at the hands of the Windies pace brigade and Akhtar could have returned that with compound interest.

We hope that Akhtar's return to the Pakistani side would not be long in coming, because not only is he a sight to behold, he is a top class entertainer.

Selectors rewarded

Good on the Interim Committee for considering to compensate the cricket selectors. Every aspect of the game today is professionalised and it is but right that the selectors too be granted a stipend and mobile phones.

In the past it was not easy finding selectors, because it was an out of pocket job and many were those who used to shun holding office as selectors.

Selectors have also been accused of not being present at the venue watching the players whom they want to select in action.

Now that they are going to be compensated, no excuse would be good enough if they are not at the scene of action.

Now that selectors are to be compensated, there would be a rush of personalities to take on the selectors job.

Today those in the selection committee are lucky in that they too are allowed trips abroad.