[Watch] “They are saying you are a banker” - Wasim Akram recalls hilarious Bay 13 story about mistaking Aussie sledge for praise

Former Pakistan captain Wasim Akram recently recalled a funny incident which occurred while he was fielding in a match against Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) back in 1989. The Aussie spectators at Bay 13 were having a go at Akram. But the Pakistan legend, who was not well-versed in English back in those days, felt the crowd was praising his performance.

Bay 13 is a section of tiered seating at the MCG and is known for vocally supporting the home team and, at times, going overboard with verbal volleys directed against the opposition side.

Akram is on a commentary assignment during Pakistan’s ongoing tour of Australia. In a video posted on Triple M Cricket on Instagram, the former left-arm pacer revealed the funny incident involving the Bay 13 crowd. He began narrating the tale by saying:

“The word starts with W. In 1989, when I got five or six wickets, I won’t say the word, you guys can guess.”

A co-commentator interrupted him and asked:

“Does it rhyme with banker?”

Akram replied with a “yep” and continued the tale. He elaborated:

“So, at Bay 13, they were calling me that, Wasim is a banker [repeats twice in signing tone]. And I thought they were praising me because at that time I couldn’t get hold of the Aussie accent. It was early days in Australia. I was very happy and waving at them and everything.”

On how he came to know about what exactly the section of the MCG crowd was telling him, Akram said:

“And then Imran [Khan], my captain, came up to me and said, ‘you know what they are saying?’. I said, ‘you know, you’re a good player’. He said, ‘no, they are saying you are a banker’, in order to explain what it meant. I had to say, ‘hang on a minute’.”

Meanwhile, Pakistan will take on Australia in the third and final Test at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) from January 3 to 7.

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Wasim Akram’s impressive record in Australia

Widely regarded as one of the greatest fast bowlers of all time, Akram played nine Tests in Australia, claiming 36 wickets at an average of 24.05 with three five-fer and one ten-wicket match haul.

The 57-year-old also excelled in Australia in the ODI format. In 64 matches in the country, he picked up 87 scalps at an average of 24.96 with three four-fers and one five-wicket haul.

Overall, he played 104 Tests and 356 ODIs for Pakistan, claiming 414 and 512 wickets, respectively.