Andrew Symonds "Misunderstood Character," Will Be Sorely Missed: Shoaib Akhtar

Andrew Symonds, one of the greatest cricketers of all time, passed away a few days back, leaving the cricketing world stunned and beyond. While the cricketing world has paid respect to the Australian all-rounder, Shoaib Akhtar described him as a “misunderstood character.”

Akhtar, who has faced Symonds numerous times during Pakistan’s international matches against Australia, said he got on well with the Australian and misses him greatly now that he’s gone.

“One of the most misunderstood figures was Andrew Symonds. He was among the most incredible and reliable friends you could possibly have. Sadly, due to problems, his profession came to a standstill.

“I miss him terribly. He was a terrific man, and we had a lot of nice times,” in an interview with Sportskeeda, Shoaib Akhtar remarked.

Shoaib Akhtar also mentioned the All-Stars series in the United States, where former cricketers from all over the world gathered. The task included Symonds, as well as Akhtar, Sachin Tendulkar, Shaun Pollock, and others.

“I was there in America in 2015 with Shane Warne, Andrew Symonds, Sachin Tendulkar, and Shaun Pollock” (for the All-Stars series). We had a great time with each other. I even posted a video of it on social media.”

‘He came in late in the order and smashed me all over the place’: Shoaib Akhtar

In 2008, Symonds’ professional career came to an end. While he was definitely one of Australia’s greatest match-winners, his career was plagued by numerous problems. Akhtar recalled some of Symonds’ most memorable efforts, including how the Australian stole the game away from Pakistan in the 2003 World Cup.

Symonds was signed by the Deccan Chargers of the Indian Premier League (IPL) for $1,350,000 in February 2008, making him the league’s second most expensive player at the time.

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