Mohammad Sami claims to have bowled 2 deliveries over 160 km/h, fans react

Shoaib Akhtar remains the fastest bowler in international cricket to date. However, his teammate Mohammad Sami has claimed to have bowled twice over 160 km/h, including 162 km/h.

Fast bowling has come to everyone's recognition again during the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022. Uncapped Indian pacer Umran Malik is creating headlines, bowling consistently at around 150 km/h. Meanwhile, the fastest bowl ever bowled in international cricket remains with former Pakistan speedster Shoab Akhtar - 161 km/h. However, his teammate Mohammad Sami begs to differ.

Sami has claimed that on a couple of occasions, he bowled over 160 km/h and did break Akhtar's record. Unfortunately, they never got registered since the speed gun was not functional at the point when he bowled. Speaking to paktv.tv, he said that fast balls like these happen occasionally, and it is challenging to be bowled consistently.

"I did bowl a couple of deliveries over 160kmph in a match. One happened to be 162, while the other was 164. However, it was claimed that the speed gun was not working correctly, and thus, the balls did not count. But, considering who has bowled the fastest, there have been hardly one or two deliveries over 160. One cannot bowl it unfailingly. It happens periodically," he said.

However, the clip above shows Sami bowling at a pace of 164km/h to Rahul Dravid. Sami happened to be one of the most successful bowlers for Pakistan. He played 36 Tests, 87 ODIs and 13 T20Is, and bagged 227 wickets across formats. During the ICC T20 World Cup 2016, his last international outing with Pakistan was playing his last game against Australia in Mohali. He had made his Pakistan debut in 2001.

As for the IPL, the fastest delivery ever bowled happens to be from Shaun Tait. He bowled at a speed of 157.7 km/h for Rajasthan Royals (RR), as he bowled it to his Australian counterpart Aaron Finch against Delhi Capitals (DC) in IPL 2011. However, Malik remains the fastest Indian bowler in the tournament's history, clocking 152.95 km/h.