ISLAMABAD: Indian spinner Kuldeep Yadav believes former Pakistan captain Wasim Akram had a big influence on him during his early career saying it was great being around the Swing of Sultan.

The 25-year-old revealed that he learned many things during the legendary pacer’s affiliation with Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR).

“Wasim sir used to like me a lot too. He didn’t speak much about bowling but prepared me a lot in terms of mentally taking on the game,” a private news channel quoted him saying.

“He prepared me to deal with different situations in different ways and taught me how to react when the batsman is attacking,” Kuldeep added.

The left-arm chinaman also said that he used to ask questions about the game situation while sitting next to him.

“I used to sit with him and try to pick things a lot. I used to ask him what he would have done in certain situations and he would test me by asking what my approach would have been,” he said.

He also appreciated Wasim’s good sense of humor and said it was great to be around him.

It must be noted that a few days ago Indian pacer Mohammad Shami had also praised Wasim Akram who played a massive role in shaping his bowling career.

Published in Dawn, April 28th, 2020