Controversially Yours  (English, Hardcover, Dogra Anshu)

Controversially Yours is the autobiography of the Pakistani cricketer who boasted the fastest ball in the game, and went on to be named the Rawalpindi Express for it.

Summary of the Book

Shoaib Akhtar entered the Pakistani cricketer scene in November 1997, and quickly became the team's best attacking fast bowler. Setting the official cricket bowling speed record of 161.3 kph, he holds the world record and has also bowled at 161.3kph, 160kph (thrice), 159kph and 158.4kph. He is one of only three known bowlers to have ever broken the 100 mph record. Born into a modest home in Rawalpindi, Punjab in Pakistan, Akhtar grew up in Karachi. His performance in the 1990s and especially that in the 1999 Cricket World Cup and at Sharjah boosted his name in Cricketing circles and he became dubbed the Rawalpindi Express. In 1999, he captured eight Indian wickets in the Asian Test championship match at Calcutta and pushed back both Tendulkar and Dravid. Despite his repeated injuries due to his bowling style, he has served the Pakistani team for a little over a decade. His career has always been the spotted tiger in the Pakistani den, boasting controversies and poor attitude. Through verbal conflicts which quickly saw him fall in popularity, he was sacked from the team in 2003. In 2003, he was caught tampering with the game ball and was immediately banned on tampering charges, becoming only the second player to have been banned for it. Again in 2003 he was banned for abusing South African spin bowler Paul Adams, this time for one Test match and two One Day International matches. Throughout his career he has been the black sheep, and in this book he speaks out to his fans about his career, and reveals his version of the story.

About Shoaib Akhtar

Shoaib Akhar is a former Pakistani cricketer and fast bowler. Called the Rawalpindi Express for having the fastest ball in recorded modern cricket, his performance boosted Pakistani cricket performance in the 1990s and he has been called a legend of Pakistani cricket.

His successes include bowling Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar off successive deliveries at the Asian Test championship match at Calcutta, and that ball was the first he ever bowled to Tendulkar. He retired from professional cricket in 2011, following the world cup.