Karachi: Legendary Pakistani fast bowler Waqar Younis backed Indian skipper Virat Kohli to go past all batting records in the coming years.
“The way he is maintaining his fitness and the way he enjoys his game and focusses on his skill level, I think he is destined to break all batting records in the years to come,” said Waqar.
The right-arm speedster who stepped down as the coach of Pakistan’s national team last year, rated Kohli as an immensely talented player in modern-day cricket. While talking about the current batsmen in world cricket, Waqar felt that Kohli is right there at the top because of his fitness and ever-improving batting, although the game has changed a considerable lot in the last decade or so.
He said, “The way I see it he should go on to achieve a lot of batting records.”
When asked to compare Sachin Tendulkar and Brian Lara-two of the greatest batsmen who he played against, Waqar rated the legendary Indian batsman higher.
He said, “I played a lot against Tendulkar and he made his debut against us. Over the years I saw him become a thorough professional and I have not seen such a committed player. He was the best batsman I bowled to and it used to be a challenge.”
Waqar, who formed a lethal bowling partnership with left-arm speedster Wasim Akram in the 1990s also said that Brian Lara was a naturally gifted batsman and could destroy the opposition on his day.
He also said that he never compromised on discipline during his stay as the captain or coach.
“I always believe that unless you are disciplined particularly in cricket sense all your talent is off no use to your team,” he said.