* Made his test debut against West Indies at Rawalpindi in 1997.
* Widely recognized as the fastest bowler in the world, his quickest recorded delivery was 161.4 kms and hour.
* His bowling skills included fast yorkers, swinging deliveries, reverse swing and sharp bouncers.
* He had hyperextended joints, which creates the optical illusion of throwing. Shoaib’s action was cleared by the International Cricket Council in 2001.
* Shoaib took eight wickets in the Asian Test Championship in Calcutta in 1999, bowling Rahul Dravid then yorking Sachin Tendulkar next ball.
* He was a huge draw at the World Cup in England in the same year where he took 16 wickets as Pakistan reached the final.
* He missed Pakistan’s Test series against England in 2006 but returned for the one-dayers in devastating fashion, taking nine wickets at 18.66.
* The injury-prone Shoaib was left out of the squad for the five-match one-day series in Sri Lanka in 2009 as well as the Champions Trophy probables, raising doubts about his future.
* Shoaib has played in 46 Tests and 163 One-day Internationals. He has taken 178 Test wickets and 247 One-day International wickets.
* Shoaib did not play after Pakistan’s loss to New Zealand in the 2011 World group stages.
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