Frightening stuff: Liam Plunkett on facing Shoaib Akhtar

England’s fast-bowler Liam Plunkett, in an interview with The Broken Trophy podcast, revealed his ‘frightening’ experience of facing Pakistan’s legendary pacer Shoaib Akhtar.

The 35-year-old had played alongside the Rawalpindi Express for Durham, however, the legendary former pacer pointed out that their friendship did not hold on the cricket field as Plunkett readied himself to face Akhtar in his debut Test for England against Pakistan in Lahore.

“Frightening stuff,” Plunkett said of watching Shoaib bowl. “In county cricket, I was first-change to Shoaib and Harmy. I was at slip for Harmy and leg-slip for Shoaib. I faced Shoaib Akhtar in my first ever Test match. Because I played with Durham before that, I was marking my run-up before the Test and he just smiled and said ‘I’m gonna kill you’ and laughed.”

Plunkett recalled how he had to walk out to the middle against Akhtar’s menacing pace.

“I remember it like it was yesterday because I had my bat, at that time – you think [now] these bats are so thick and stuff – but it was Kashmir willow, it was real thin,” he said. “And I was sat ready to bat, I was next in, and the TV screen’s right there, so you can see it’s like 96, 97, 96 [miles per hour]. Ashley Giles’ stumps get taken out, and I walk out to a guy who’s bowling 90 mile an hour.”

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England’s former batsman Paul Collinwood, who was batting alongside Plunkett, could not offer much solace during this daunting period of play.

“I don’t know how much Colly was on, but he was batting nicely, and often in county cricket when you go out there, ‘Is he bowling quick?’ and generally it’s ‘Oh yeah but it’s skiddy and that but you’re alright’, and Colly was like, ‘Oh yeah, it’s f**kin’ rapid mate’.”

The fast-bowler strung together a defiant knock of nine runs from 51 deliveries and was finally removed my Pakistan’s former pacer Mohammad Sami rather than Akhtar.

“I remember the first one, it looked like I played it well,” he said. “You duck and you turn and you can see it travel to the keeper and the keeper catches it. I got my first medal of honour, he hit me on the shoulder. I pretty much shit my pants at that point.

“He’s just such a big solid bloke, he’s got massive tree trunk legs, and he just steams in, and you’re like, ‘every ball’s got serious intent here’. I think I was like nine off 60 balls, but I managed to do a decent job. My first Test, that was a serious challenge, and batting at No.9, to be able to put up a partnership, get seven or eight but face 60 balls, I was pretty happy with it.”

Plunkett has represented England in 13 Tests, 89 One-day Internationals (ODIs) and 22 Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is) while picking up 41 wickets, 135 wickets and 25 wickets in each format of the sport, respectively.