Biography of Waqar Younis:-Waqar Younis left a legacy unmatched and unparalleled in the fast bowling of the 90s and 2000s, he was the man who made Wasim a Sultan of Swing, Wasim himself admitted that he would never have become what he is today if there weren’t any Waqar to sustain his deadly and furious bowling attack.
The two Ws, of which Waqar was an outstanding half, the pair terrorized almost every batting line up in their bloom. Waqar was born in Vehari, an underdeveloped city of Punjab on November 16, 1971.
He lived most of his early life in Sharjah as his father was a contractor in the state; he later moved to Pakistan and started as a fast bowler from the college level.
Biography of Waqar Younis
- Born:- 16 November 1971 (age 45), Vehari
- Height:- 1.83 m
- Spouse:- Faryal Waqar Younis (m. 2000)
- Test Debut:-15 November 1989 v India
- ODI Debut:- 14 October 1989 v West Indies
- Last Debut:- 4 March 2003 v Zimbabwe
Waqar Younis Stats & Records
Waqar Younis has the world record of most five-wicket hauls i.e. 13 in One Day International cricket. He is also the only non-batsman to score 1000 runs without a single fifty. Waqar is the only bowler to take three five-wicket hauls in three consecutive innings, a record still unbroken. Waqar was also awarded Widen’s Player of the Year Award in 1992.
Waqar was all about aggression; it was installed into Waqar by the former captain of Pakistan cricket team and one of the most loved cricketers in the world, Imran Khan.
He had played only six first-class matches before he was discovered by the national captain Imran Khan at that time in a game between UBL and Delhi XI, he was included after Saleem Jaffar got injured just before the game.
Imran enjoyed Waqar’s bowling and met him the very next day offering him a ticket to Sharjah again but this time as a national cricketer of Pakistan. Waqar couldn’t sleep for days after that pleasant incidence, rather a life changing for Waqar Younis.
Waqar signed his first-ever first-class contract with Surrey in 1990-91 season, English spectators loved the way Wiki bowled and celebrate his wickets. With 113 wickets in a season, Waqar Younis was all set to crush any batting lineup for his national team.
Waqar made his debut against their arch rival’s Indian cricket team, taking four wickets that included the wicket of debutant Sachin Tendulkar and the captain Kapil Dev. Waqar was impressive with his innovative swing at a very high speed along with his second W, Wasim Akram.
Both Waqar and Wasim were overwhelmed with talent; they both were masters of reverse and conventional swing. Both the Ws made cricket fans remember the good old days of West Indian bowling attack,infact, they were even better than that.
With unstoppable wins in test and ODI cricket, Waqar Younis made the ball talk in his hands. Though he had only nine fingers, still they were enough to rattle the opposition and dance on Waqar’s way.
The biography of Waqar Younis is filled with adventures, criticism as a bowler, as a captain, and as a senior player when he was blatantly removed along with nine other teammates without giving him a chance of the farewell match after the humiliating defeat in 2003 World Cup.
Waqar Younis had a bucket full of deliveries that are still scarce and not even the experienced bowlers know of, he was undisputedly a pace magician admitted by world class batsmen and cricketers of his era.
Waqar Younis as a Bowler
Waqar was exceptional as a bowler, being a full-time bowler, Waqar always achieved many feats in his 15-year career as a frontline bowler and seen the remaining ones as a coach of Pakistan Cricket Team.
He started as a skilled and god-gifted talent when he took 113 wickets for Surrey with an astonishing average just above 14 runs per wicket.
The discovery of Imran Khan made its way to international cricket in the late 80s playing against India, the Burewala Express made it possible for Pakistan ensuring the victory with his two spells, one at the start and one right after 30th over.
Waqar Younis had a variety of inswingers, outswinger, reverse swing, quick short pitched deliveries, slower and quicker deliveries, the nasty ones, and the world famous “banana swing”.
The banana swing is a special delivery that most of the bowlers are either incapableof delivering orthey are not aware of its technique, with a very fast speed was swung by Waqar in the air.
Waqar was consistent around 90 mph; his fastest delivery recorded between 95-96 miles per hour i.e. 153-155 kph. Waqar once said, I always aimed at wickets contrary to most of the Pacers who, instead, aim at the batsmen. My approach got me the desired success in international cricket, especially in limited overs format.
In 87 test matches that he played, Waqar Younis bowling figures were astonishing with 373 wickets and 22 five-wicket hauls averaging 23.56. He has an even more impressing record in One Day Internationals, after playing 262 ODIs, Waqar Younis took 416 wickets, being fastest to reach 50, 300, 350, and 400 wickets in ODI format.
He was the first and now the second in the world after South African Steyn Gun with the best strike rate after taking 350+ test wickets. Also, Waqar Younis is the youngest captain in cricket history and youngest to hit 400-wickets mark.
Waqar Younis has a single hat-trick in his International career that he achieved in a match against New Zealand in 1994 season.
Waqar Younis Post-retirement Era
After Waqar Younis had been sacked forcefully from the national side, he retired from all forms of international cricket in April 2004.
He took a break from cricket, had some time with family and friends and came back as a bowling coach of Pakistan, he was appointed as a bowling coach for Pakistan in March 2006. Waqar resigned asa protest to restrict him as a consultant in test series only, hardly a year before being appointed to the post.
He was again appointed in December 2009 as a head coach of Pakistan. He led the team to crucial wins and close defeats as he was leading a young ODI and T20 team relatively. Pakistan lost in a dramatic semifinal, then in Asia Cup, later on, they lost to Srilanka in a nailbiter.
Later on England Tour, Pakistan were winners against England in T20Is but defeated in test matches. Waqar Younis was a head coach when the infamous spot-fixing scandal surfaced in England Tour.
The spearheads of Pakistan’s bowling attack were suspended for five years, i.e. Muhammad Aamir and Muhammad Asif along with the captain Salman Butt.
Pakistan had the strongest combination in 2011 World Cup with Shahid Afridi leading from the front, Pakistan was among the two favorites of the World Cup held in subcontinent excluding venue of Pakistan.
Pakistan was the group stage topper, they beat West Indies by 10 wickets in hand in a quarterfinal but lost to hot favorites and arch-rivals India in a match of the decade ,a final before Final in Mohali by 29 runs.
India went on to win the World Cup. Waqar was praised for his coaching and uniting a politically infected team to play like one for the country.
Waqar resigned again in 2013 and once again was appointed by PCB as head coach from 2014-2016. He recently left from head coach position as he cited that PCB failed to accept his recommendations and demands for changing cricket structure of Pakistan. He was replaced by South African Coach Mickey Arthur for two years.
Confidential News Leak:
After a humiliating ICC T20 World Cup 2016, a board of governors of PCB demanded a report from the coach and senior players including captain Shahid Afridi.
Waqar blamed Afridi for a humiliating group stage elimination from the World Cup 2016, he said that Afridi was non-serious and unprofessional, he used to shuffle batting and bowling order without taking the coach and other players in confidence.
The document, however, leaked to media that created a huge controversy, Shahid’s fans were too angry to accept anything against him. He also blamed PSL for it, said PSL gave the players relaxation for not practicing for an upcoming event.
Waqar resigned along with T20 captain Shahid Afridi three months before his coaching contract officially ended. Waqar Younis was offered a bowling coach position in IPL 6 for Sun Risers Hyderabad in 2013.
Waqar Younis Family and Personal Life
Waqar is living a perfect marital life, he married a Pakistani-Australian national Dr. Faryal Waqar Younis in the year 2000. They have a son Azaan Waqar and two daughters Mariam Waqar and Maira Waqar. Waqar Younis wife and kids are currently residing in Australian city Kellyville.
Inclusion in ICC Hall of Fame:
Waqar was included in a most privileged Hall of Fame by ICC in December 2013. He was among the few cricketing legends of Pakistan including Imran Khan, Hanif Muhammad, Wasim Akram, and Javed Miandad.
Interesting Fact: The Fastest man alive, world’s best sprinter and most successful Olympian, a Jamaican runner Usain Bolt is a huge fan of Waqar Younis as he said he grew up watching Waqar and Wasim bowling, he was a huge fan of Pakistan cricket team.
