‘I Was Surprised When Woolmer Told Me Asif’s Bowling Speed,’ Says Former Test Cricketer
During commentary on the opening day of the second Test between Pakistan and England at Lord’s, former Pakistan captain Ramiz Raja made an interesting revelation about a major prediction made by former Pakistan coach Bob Woolmer regarding Mohammad Asif.
According to Ramiz Raja, when he first saw Mohammad Asif, he was with Bob Woolmer. At the time, Asif had not played a single match for Pakistan. Woolmer introduced Asif to him and said that Mohammad Asif would become a great bowler in the future.
Ramiz Raja said his first question to Bob Woolmer was about Asif’s pace. Woolmer told him that Asif was bowling at around 130 kilometres per hour at the time. Ramiz said he was surprised because Pakistan had always been known for producing fast bowlers.
“I said, then how can he be a fast bowler?” Ramiz recalled.
Ramiz Raja said Mohammad Asif later became an outstanding bowler because of his line and length. However, he said Pakistan were accustomed to seeing bowlers operating at around 90 miles per hour, so watching this style of bowling initially felt unusual.
Ramiz Raja said he had been part of teams that could destroy opponents purely through pace. Bowling reverse swing, yorkers and bouncers at speeds of around 95 miles per hour had been a key feature of Pakistan’s bowling attack.
He added that among Pakistani bowlers, the concept of consistently bowling to a disciplined length was relatively uncommon, as they focused on aggressive bowling and gave opponents little opportunity to settle.
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