Akhtar has said in his autobiography that Sachin Tendulkar is afraid of him. But, hope he remembers how Sachin Tendulkar tore him apart in a World Cup game in 2003, where he played a blistering knock, which helped India in winning the game.  Most cricket fans remember the match for the six that he hit Akhtar into the crowd, with a strong upper square cut. Still, he goes on and writes that Tendulkar is afraid of him. Cricket fans do not approve of him getting scared of Akhtar.

The way Shoaib has talked about Sachin in his autobiography would hurt many sincere fans of Tendulkar, who has been watching the young boy from Mumbai turning into a Man of Steel. One such fan, Pravin says in an aggressive manner, “Akhtar, being an average cricketer cannot write such unwarranted things in his book just to gain publicity; He is a living legend, so Akhtar has to think not just once, but twice before he points a finger at Tendulkar”.  

Pravin was also one of those fans who supported Tendulkar when he was blamed for tampering the ball, once during his career, but at last he came out clean to delight fans like Pravin. Indian fans are very sensitive about Sachin and any attack on him, verbally or in writing will not be taken lightly. So Akhtar should have chosen his words wisely. It’s because of these small things in the book, which will not help in its sales in India.

Akhtar has also said that Sachin is not a match winner. This point could be debated for long hours, but still one may have to conclude that Sachin himself has won many matches on its own. He has been a constant threat for bowlers such as Shane Warne, Waqar Younis, Allan Donald, Dominic Cork, who all put him in high regard as a cricketer, let alone batsmen only. Players like Wasim Akram have also criticised Akhtar for lashing out at Tendulkar in his autobiography.

There have been few instances when Sachin Tendulkar has been taken to task by cricket experts around the World for various reasons and some fans too, but majority of his fans have always backed Sachin Tendulkar.