Former Pakistan pacer Wasim Akram has revealed that he was addicted to cocaine after he ended in career in cricket.
The Sultan of Swing made the revelation in his upcoming biography book “Sultan: A Memoir” excerpts of which were published by an English publication, The Times, along with his interview.
Akram is Pakistan’s leading wicket-taker in both Test and ODI cricket. He bade farewell to cricket in 2003 after an 18-year international career.
The left-armer revealed that he developed the cocaine addiction after his retirement as he was finding a “substitute for the adrenaline rush of competition”. He added that he got rid of the menace in 2009 after the death of his first wife, Huma.
“I liked to indulge myself; I liked to party,” an excerpt of his book reads. “The culture of fame in south Asia is all consuming, seductive and corrupting. You can go to ten parties a night, and some do. And it took its toll on me. My devices turned into vices.
“Worst of all, I developed a dependence on cocaine. It started innocuously enough when I was offered a line at a party in England; my use grew steadily more serious, to the point that I felt I needed it to function.
“It made me volatile. It made me deceptive. Huma, I know, was often lonely in this time… she would talk of her desire to move to Karachi, to be nearer her parents and siblings. I was reluctant. Why? Partly because I liked going to Karachi on my own, pretending it was work when it was actually about partying, often for days at a time.
“Huma eventually found me out, discovering a packet of cocaine in my wallet… ‘You need help.’ I agreed. It was getting out of hand. I couldn’t control it. One line would become two, two would become four; four would become a gram, a gram would become two. I could not sleep. I could not eat. I grew inattentive to my diabetes, which caused me headaches and mood swings. Like a lot of addicts, part of me welcomed discovery: the secrecy had been exhausting.”