Published 17:32 IST, April 15th 2020
Shoaib Akhtar calls Ricky Ponting 'bravest batsman ever' in response to their 1999 duel
Former Australian captain Ricky Ponting and Pakistani speedster Shoaib Akhtar recently took to Twitter and recalled their memorable duel from a 1999 Test match.
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Former Australian cricket captain Ricky Ponting has been actively sharing videos from his playing days on social media. Quite recently, he responded to a video uploaded by England Cricket on Twitter which displayed an Andrew Flintoff over to him from the 2005 Ashes series. The two-time World Cup-winning captain responded to the post by describing it the “best over” he ever faced in his life and lauded Andrew Flintoff’s reverse-swing at 90-odd mph (140s kmph).
Best over I ever faced. Class reverse swing at 90odd mph! https://t.co/EUdN9P64Cr
— Ricky Ponting AO (@RickyPonting) April 10, 2020
Ricky Ponting recalls 1999 duel with Shoaib Akhtar
On April 15, Ricky Ponting once again took to Twitter and uploaded a short footage from Pakistan’s tour of Australia in 1999. In the video, he can be seen facing a barrage of rising bouncers from former Pakistan speedster Shoaib Akhtar. In the caption, Ponting wrote that while Andrew Flintoff’s over was the best over he ever faced, Shoaib Akhtar’s spell from the 1999 Perth Test was the “fastest spell” he had ever faced.
Got plenty of questions the other day after calling the Flintoff over the best I'd faced.
— Ricky Ponting AO (@RickyPonting) April 15, 2020
This from @shoaib100mph was the fastest spell I'd ever faced and trust me Justin wasn't backing up too far at the other end. pic.twitter.com/JhhuEwXrAc
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Shoaib Akhtar responds to Ricky Ponting
Upon coming across Ricky Ponting’s tweet, Shoaib Akhtar also took to the microblogging site and responded to the legendary Australian batsman. Shoaib Akhtar praised Ponting for facing his spell by calling him the “bravest” batsman. The speedster also jokingly made fun of Justin Langer who was at the non-strikers’ end at the time.
Only @RickyPonting could have played it like this. He was the bravest. @JustinLanger8 definitely wanted to stay at non striker end. Lol https://t.co/q8bGCpNsuA
— Shoaib Akhtar (@shoaib100mph) April 15, 2020
Shoaib Akhtar fastest ball
Shoaib Akhtar is credited for bowling the fastest delivery to be recorded in international cricket. During a group game against England at the 2003 ICC World Cup, the speedster clocked 100.2 mph (161.3 kmph). With his rip snorter in Newlands, the 'Rawalpindi Express' also became the first bowler to break the 100 mph barrier twice in his career.
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17:32 IST, April 15th 2020