Wasim Akram was KKR's bowling coach from 2010-2016.
Former Pakistan cricketer Wasim Akram has revealed how Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) co-owner Shah Rukh Khan arranged for a Boeing plane at his request, to transport KKR players during the 2012 IPL.
Akram was the bowling coach of the KKR franchise from 2010 to 2016 and witnessed their two IPL title wins in 2012 and 2014. During his stay, he witnessed a fantastic occasion that demonstrated KKR co-owner Shah Rukh Khan's love, care, and admiration for his players, which continues to this day.
In an interview with VU Sports, as reported by the Indian Express, Akram recalled an incident from the 2012 IPL season in which he asked Shah Rukh how the players would feel exhausted as they arrived at the venue on the eve of the game.
Akram was apprehensive that weariness would have an impact on the outcome. But the Bollywood celebrity urged him not to worry, and within an hour, he had arranged for a Boeing for the entire squad.
“I think this happened during the 2012 IPL season. Our knockout match was in Kolkata, and I remember we were going to arrive via some place. Shah Rukh Khan was there, so I asked him, ‘Khan saab, ek request hai (Mr. Khan, I have a request).’ I said, ‘Ladke bade thak jayenge, hum kal pahunchenge, parso match hai.
Toh agar ek private plane (The team will get extremely tired.). We’ll reach tomorrow, and the match is the day after. If a private plane could be arranged)…’ He said, ‘Thak jayenge ladke? Koi problem nahi (They’ll get tired, you say, no problem). Within one hour, pura Boeing jahaaz khada tha for the whole team,” Akram revealed about SRK, as per the Indian Express.
Later in his memoirs, Akram acknowledged how crucial the KKR job was to him after spending time in a drug rehabilitation facility in Lahore under "brutal" conditions.
“Movies conjure up an image of rehab as a caring, nurturing environment. This facility in Lahore was brutal: a bare building with five cells, a meeting room, and a kitchen. Once out, I tried to keep calm, to get centered. Shah Rukh Khan offered me an attractive job as the bowling coach at Kolkata Knight Riders—my first senior coaching role anywhere,” Akram added.