The man of the final award was given to Wasim Akram as he steered his side to an ODI World Cup win in 1992, Pakistan’s first and only to date. Wasim bagged three wickets, but that is by no means all about his spell.
Wasim Akram’s magic
The deliveries that fetched him those wickets were not only unplayable but also impossible to replicate. The balls swung in by a mile and left the batters completely bamboozled. Allan Lamb and Chris Lewis were the victims of two high-class, consecutive pace deliveries. The sort of deliveries that erase the blame entirely off the batters, so good are they.
For a fast bowler like Kagiso Rabada, who will have a role similar to Wasim to play for his team come the ODI World Cup, the spell continues to inspire him.
Rabada looks up to Wasim Akram
Like Pakistan in 1992, South Africa will enter the tournament without any title to their name, in a home World Cup no less. Producing something akin to what Wasim did is Rabada’s dream as he prepares for the tournament.
“One World Cup moment from the past that I’ll never forget, because I’m a bowler, I’m going to go to the bowlers’ club was Wasim Akram against England in the final,” Rabada said.
“Him just cle00aning up (the stumps) and putting on a show to take it home for his country and showing the passion and the skill.
“He was fast, had so much skill, and just had this presence, this heightened energy about him that he was there to play.”
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