Shoaib Akhtar calls Ricky Ponting 'bravest batsman ever' in response to their 1999 duel

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).

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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.

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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.

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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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