Shoaib Akhtar scraps party animal tag

World's fastest bowler says he understood relations after he walked away from cricket

ISLAMABAD: World’s fastest bowler Shoaib Akthar believes people have created a wrong perception about him being a playboy or a party guy.

"I am a very down-to-earth person,” said Akhtar, while talking to a private news channel. "I am a simple guy and I am not a party animal or anything like that.”

Akhtar, who is nicknamed the 'Rawalpindi Express', added that people misjudge him a lot.

Shoaib, who made his Test debut in November 1997 as a new-ball fast-bowler, said he understood the importance of relations after his retirement.

"I never missed my family on Eid or on any other festival, but after I retired, I came to know about relations [and their importance]," he said.

Shoaib, who retired during the 2011 World Cup, said he lives a simple life without any luxuries. "I have never made anything in my whole life,” he said. “I just have two t-shirts, a jeans and a pair of slippers in which I roam [around]," he said.

Shoaib is regarded as the fastest bowler ever in the history of cricket and has bowled the fastest delivery officially recorded at a speed of 161.3 kmph. The delivery was bowled against England in the 2003 World Cup. He was also the first bowler to have been recorded to bowl over 100 mph.