Wasim Or Imran?

There's a fascinating little debate going on over at PakPassion, ignited by this piece on Cricinfo that asks the basic question: who is Pakistan's greatest bowler of all time? I loved this nugget:

Some friends and I once had the opportunity to ask Javed Miandad where he stood on the great debate. Miandad's initial response was to insist on framing the question narrowly. So we did: Let's say you're having a net facing Akram and Imran, both of whom are at their peak; who would trouble you more? Miandad closed his eyes and for several seconds and appeared deep in thought. Then he gave his verdict: Akram. Why? Because he could move it both ways with greater skill than Imran. Of course, there's more to bowling greatness than bowling well in the nets, but Miandad wouldn't be dragged into the larger debate.

Some would reason that Miandad probably said that because he hated Wasim slightly less than he hated Imran, but we'll leave that aside and assume he's acting in good faith.



My own view on this is that Wasim had more variety (he could swing it both ways, Imran could only bring it in), had the better bouncer (harder to read because of his action), and was probably quicker at his peak than Imran was at his (though only just). Put differently, I think he had more natural bowling talent than anyone else that has ever put on a Pakistan shirt. But I think Imran was a more dedicated cricketer, he was a smarter bowler, and bowled fewer bad balls (Waz had some real shocking spells, where he'd spray it around and bowl a bunch of no balls and snatch his cap back from the umpire). He was probably a more effective bowler than Wasim. But I am confident in stating that batsmen -- like Javed above -- would prefer to face Imran at his peak than Waz at his peak.