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Rediff.com  » Sports » Younis launches scathing attack on Akhtar

Younis launches scathing attack on Akhtar

June 24, 2003 12:39 IST
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Former Pakistan captain Waqar Younis has launched a scathing attack on Shoaib Akhtar after his performances in the three-match one-day series in England.

The Pakistani paceman proved expensive at The Oval when his 2-69 from nine overs allowed England to level the three-match series at a canter.

The 27-year-old, who signed a three-month deal with Durham over the weekend, responded superbly at Lord's on Sunday but finished wicketless for 40.

"It's ridiculous Shoaib coming out in the papers saying he's going to do this or do that," said Waqar to the BBC Sport website.  

"He's been doing it for a few years now and he never lives up to it and it looks pretty ugly. He performs to his ability once a year - and then he has the nerve to compare himself with Glenn McGrath.

"He was saying last week that if he'd been born Australian, he'd have taken more wickets.

"It might have been better for Pakistan if he had been born in Australia."

Richard Johnson has returned to the England squad after recovering from a knee injury.

It means England have released Sussex fast bowler James Kirtley, who was acting as cover, from their 15-man one-day squad.

Fresh from the 2-1 victory over Pakistan in the Natwest Challenge, England will take on South Africa and Zimbabwe in the NatWest Series.

Johnson, who took six wickets on his Test debut against Zimbabwe earlier this month, missed the first three one-day internationals but has recovered to join up with the squad again.

England's first match of the series is against Zimbabwe at Trent Bridge on Thursday.

Bangladesh arrived in Australia on Monday after a damning investigation has revealed the newest Test nation is as shambolic off the field as its players are inadequate on it.

Commissioned after Bangladesh's miserable failure in the World Cup, where they even lost to the club cricketers of Canada, the wide-reaching report alleges endemic corruption, cronyism and incompetence.

It recommends: "Stern action against the corrupt and the dead wood would set an example for others."

The report says that a raft of checks and balances are necessary to ensure Bangladesh's cricket officials do not line their own pockets by favouring businesses in which they have an interest.

"We have heard of examples where lots of financial irregularities were committed. To cite all of them would create another volume," the report says.

"There are allegations that when teams, management or board officials go abroad, only one or two selected travel agents are given the business and reportedly, these travel agents are connected to high officials of the board."

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