Former England all-rounder Moeen Ali has revealed that Pakistan’s Saeed Anwar is his favorite cricketer and one of the most “underrated players” in the history of the game.
Speaking on his podcast Beard Before Wicket, Moeen praised Anwar’s stylish batting and said the former opener had a huge influence on his own game.
“Saeed Anwar is a legend, but he is massively underrated. They don’t talk about him enough,” Moeen said, adding that Anwar’s record was probably not as good as some other guys, but the way he played made him his favorite player.
“He was the guy I tried to copy as much as I could. When I was younger, I used to try and bat like him,” he said and added that many cricketers from that era considered Anwar the best.
“If you speak with a lot of players from that era, they will say he was the best.”
Anwar, remembered for his record-breaking 194 against India in 1997, was Pakistan’s leading century-maker in ODIs with 20 hundreds.
Known for his graceful yet aggressive stroke play, he inspired a generation of batsmen with his fearless approach at the top of the order.