Waqar Younis repeatedly targeted Alec Stewart's front foot with devastating inswinging yorkers throughout the 1990s, making Stewart's dismissal — bowled or LBW — a recurring pattern that defined both men's careers as a study in attacking strategy against a technically orthodox batsman.
Waqar Younis was the greatest yorker bowler in cricket history — he transformed the delivery from an occasional surprise into a primary weapon. Combined with Wasim Akram's swing from the other end, Pakistan had the most complete fast bowling partnership of the 1990s.
Alec Stewart was a technically orthodox batsman with a slightly high backlift that left him marginally exposed to the full ball aimed at his front toe. He was not deficient technically — he was facing arguably cricket's most accurate attacking bowler.
The England-Pakistan series across the decade gave Waqar multiple opportunities to identify and exploit Stewart's vulnerability. Once the pattern was established — Waqar would bowl full and straight; Stewart would get either LBW or bowled — both men knew what was coming. The question was whether knowing helped.
Alec Stewart was England's most versatile cricketer of the 1990s — batsman, wicketkeeper, occasionally opening the batting. Against most bowling he was technically compact and difficult to dismiss cheaply. Against Waqar Younis, he repeatedly succumbed to the inswinging yorker aimed at the base of off stump. Waqar's ability to deliver full-pitched balls at 90mph+ that swerved late into the batsman's toes was unique in world cricket. Stewart was dismissed repeatedly by this delivery — bowled multiple times, LBW several more. The pattern was clear enough that it became a tactical discussion in English cricket.
1992 Headingley: Waqar bowls Stewart for 14 with inswinging yorker aimed at off stump
Same match: Stewart caught in front second innings — Waqar twice in the same Test
1996 Lord's: Stewart survives Waqar for 40 overs before falling to the same delivery
ODI series: Waqar dismisses Stewart four times in one series through identical yorker plan
Stewart averages significantly below his career figure against Waqar specifically
1992-06-04
Headingley: Waqar dismisses Stewart twice with inswinging yorker
1996-06-01
Lord's: Stewart survives but eventually falls to same delivery
2001-01-01
Career ends with Waqar holding a systematic record against Stewart
“Alec plays beautifully but the full, straight delivery angled in — he consistently has trouble with it. I bowled it every time and it worked more often than not.”
“Waqar was the hardest I faced against the new ball. You knew the yorker was coming and it still got you. That's how good he was.”
Stewart remained England's first-choice keeper-batsman until 2003 despite the Waqar vulnerability. His career average of 39.54 reflected that the specific problem with Waqar was contained and didn't undermine his overall Test career.
Waqar retired in 2003 and became a coach and commentator. He identified Stewart as one of the England batsmen he most reliably dismissed but acknowledged Stewart as a high-quality competitor.
Waqar had a clear systematic advantage over Stewart through this era — the delivery was consistently effective regardless of how many times Stewart had seen it. The problem for Stewart was that the late swing made the ball genuinely difficult to position against, even knowing it was coming.
The Waqar-Stewart dynamic illustrated an important principle: even technically correct batsmen can have specific vulnerabilities to specific bowling styles, and the best bowlers find and exploit them systematically. Waqar's yorker against Stewart was not luck — it was deliberate planning executed perfectly.
Australia vs Pakistan
22 November 1981
Dennis Lillee kicked Javed Miandad on the field, prompting Miandad to raise his bat as if to strike Lillee. Umpire Tony Crafter intervened to separate them.
New Zealand vs West Indies
12 February 1980
Michael Holding kicked the stumps out of the ground in frustration after an LBW appeal was turned down against John Parker.
West Indies vs Australia
28 April 1995
Curtly Ambrose got in Steve Waugh's face after being told to go back to his mark. Richie Richardson had to pull Ambrose away. Ambrose then bowled a devastating spell.