Shoaib Akhtar so lethal that he threatened to 'kill' me in 2005 Test: Liam Plunkett

England cricketer Liam Plunkett reminisced the time he played against Pakistani fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar for the first time. Liam Plunkett, while speaking to The Broken Podcast, revealed the frightening instance he came across Shoaib Akhtar during his Test debut. Liam Plunkett made his Test debut for England against Pakistan in 2005 at Lahore.

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“I’m gonna kill you”: Shoaib Akhtar told Liam Plunkett on debut

On the podcast, Liam Plunkett revealed that he was teammates with Shoaib Akhtar at Durham in County Cricket. Shoaib Akhtar played for the county team during 2003 and 2004. Liam Plunkett said that he used to be the first change to Shoaib Akhtar and Steve Harmison during his time at Durham. Liam Plunkett also revealed that he used to field at slip for Harmison and at leg slip for Shoaib Akhtar.

The fact that Liam Plunkett and Shoaib Akhtar had shared a dressing room didn’t stop the latter from intimidating Plunkett when he made his Test debut for England in 2005. Recalling the ‘frightening’ incident, Plunkett revealed that while he was marking his run-up before the first Test, Shoaib Akhtar just smiled at him and said 'I'm gonna kill you' while laughing.

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Liam Plunkett then went on to reveal how it was facing the Pakistani pacer. During his Test debut, Liam Plunkett came out to bat in the 78th over in the first innings, with the score reading 249 for 7. Liam Plunkett revealed that he remembered the incident like it was yesterday. He also talked about the bat, saying that while bats today are thick, during his debut he used a thin Kashmir willow bat.

Liam Plunkett shared that before going in to bat, he remembers seeing the TV screen show that Shoaib Akhtar is bowling at 96, 97, 96 miles per hour at the start of the over. Despite Plunkett’s apprehensions, he managed to fare well against Shoaib Akhtar. In his debut match, Liam Plunkett scored 9 runs off 51 balls. He also managed to stay unbeaten during the first innings against Shoaib Akhtar, ultimately losing his wicket to Mohammad Sami.

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Liam Plunkett shared his experience of facing Shoaib Akhtar during his debut. On the podcast, he said that he pretty much s*** his pants when a Shoaib Akhtar bouncer hit him on the shoulder. He recalled ducking the deliveries and looking back at the keeper to see him catch the ball. After his debut, Liam Plunkett went on to have an illustrious career with England. The player was also part of the 2019 World Cup-winning squad with England.

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Shoaib Akhtar fastest ball record holder

Throughout his career, Shoaib Akhtar was known for being extremely quick. He was also nicknamed Rawalpindi Express as a result. The Shoaib Akhtar fastest ball was clocked at 161.3 km/h (100.23 mph). The Shoaib Akhtar faster ball was bowled by the player during the 2003 World Cup against England in a pool match.

Image Courtesy: instagram/pudsy190, instagram/imshoaibakhtar

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