Shoaib Akhtar — widely recognized by his cricketing alias 'The Rawalpindi Express' — is a retired Pakistani fast bowler who became the first bowler in…
Total Followers -0.4%
3M
Across Instagram
Primary Platform
3M followers · 100% of audience
Engagement
4.0%
vs. 1.5% category median
Sponsorship Tier
Macro
Est. $36K–$85K / IG post
The Rawalpindi Express publicly called out India's bowling attack for their poor performance against South Africa in the Super Eights stage of the 2026 ICC Men's T20 World Cup.
He landed in Bangladesh on December 14, 2025 ahead of the BPL's December 26 start, joining team events, fan appearances, and sponsor activations.
Dhaka Capitals appointed Akhtar in a hybrid mentoring capacity, citing his brand value and ability to motivate players. The franchise CEO confirmed the move, noting his role would be similar to Saeed Ajmal's the previous season.
Both Pakistani cricket legends expressed disappointment after PCB officials were notably absent on stage at the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 final presentation.
| Platform | Followers | 30d Growth | Engagement | Posts / wk | Last upload |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3,036,598 | +-11539 | 4.0% | 0.7 | 1 months ago |
| Window | Combined | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Last 7 days | +0 +0.0% | +0 +0.0% | +0 +0.0% | +0 |
| Last 30 days | -11539 -0.4% | +0 +0.0% | +0 +0.0% | -11539 |
| Last 90 days | -50408 -1.7% | +0 +0.0% | +0 +0.0% | -50408 |
| Last 365 days | -50408 -1.7% | +0 +0.0% | +0 +0.0% | -50408 |
Daily follower snapshots from CreatorDB's longitudinal index.
Shoaib Akhtar — widely recognized by his cricketing alias 'The Rawalpindi Express' — is a retired Pakistani fast bowler who became the first bowler in cricket history to be officially recorded delivering a ball at over 100 miles per hour. Born and raised in Rawalpindi, he represented Pakistan at the international level from the late 1990s through 2011, building a reputation as one of the most aggressive and physically imposing pace bowlers of his generation. Since retirement he has transitioned into a prominent media and commentary presence, leveraging his name recognition across South Asian cricket audiences through social platforms, television punditry, and event appearances. His Instagram account operates under the handle @imshoaibakhtar and reflects a life that remains deeply embedded in the cricket ecosystem — recent activity ties him to the Dhaka Capitals franchise in the Bangladesh Premier League, while candid posts about travel schedules, city life in Islamabad, and environmental observations in Pakistan give the feed a personal, conversational texture beyond pure cricket content.
Shoaib Akhtar — 'The Rawalpindi Express' — sits squarely in the cricket, sports performance, and lifestyle categories, leveraging his status as one of Pakistan's most iconic fast bowlers. His audience is heavily male-skewed and concentrated in the prime 25–34 earner bracket, with a core Pakistani base complemented by strong South Asian diaspora reach across the US, India, Canada, and the UK — a cross-border footprint attractive to telecoms, sportswear, and South Asian-market FMCG or fintech brands. Engagement runs well above category median, indicating an invested community rather than passive followers. His recent alignment with Dhaka Capitals in BPL 2026 points to active tournament-level partnerships; beyond cricket properties, he is a plausible fit for sports nutrition, lifestyle apparel, and diaspora-focused financial services.
Benchmark estimates for a creator at Imshoaibakhtar's tier (Macro, 3M combined followers, PAK). Pulled from CreatorDB's category benchmarks.
The CreatorDB Agency runs end-to-end influencer campaigns globally — shortlisting, outreach, contracting, and performance reporting. Talk to our team about building a campaign around creators in this niche.
The nickname comes from his birthplace, Rawalpindi in Pakistan, combined with the sheer pace of his bowling that made him one of the most feared fast bowlers in cricket history. He adopted it as a personal brand and still uses it prominently in his Instagram bio today.
Yes, Shoaib Akhtar holds the official record for the fastest delivery ever measured in international cricket, clocked at 161.3 km/h (100.23 mph) during a 2003 ICC Cricket World Cup match against England. The record has stood for over two decades and remains one of cricket's most celebrated individual milestones.
Shoaib Akhtar has been associated with the Dhaka Capitals franchise in the Bangladesh Premier League 2026, as evidenced by his posts carrying the hashtags #dhakacapitals and #bpl2026. He travelled to Dhaka for the tournament and described the reception he received from fans there as overwhelming.
In 2006 the Pakistan Cricket Board handed him a two-year ban after he tested positive for the prohibited substance Nandrolone. He successfully appealed the decision, the ban was overturned, and he went on to continue representing Pakistan at the international level.
Shoaib Akhtar retired from all forms of international cricket in February 2011. Despite a career repeatedly interrupted by injuries and disciplinary disputes, he finished as one of the most dominant and iconic fast bowlers Pakistan has ever produced.
Shoaib Akhtar has been based in Islamabad for around nine years, a fact he mentioned himself in a recent Instagram post about the city's air quality. Franchise cricket commitments take him abroad regularly, including recent travel to Dhaka and Montreal, but Islamabad remains his home base.
Shoaib Akhtar was born on February 13, 1975, in Rawalpindi, placing him in his early fifties as of 2026. He remains one of the most recognisable active voices in cricket media, far outpacing peers of his generation in digital reach.
The Rawalpindi Express has stayed deeply connected to the sport as a pundit, commentator, and franchise cricket figure. His 2026 involvement with the Dhaka Capitals in the BPL shows he continues to play a hands-on role in the game globally rather than simply commenting from the sidelines.
Shoaib Akhtar has built a following of over three million on Instagram, placing him firmly in the Macro creator tier for athlete accounts. His engagement rate runs well above the category median, reflecting the intensity of his cricket fanbase rather than passive follower accumulation.
India consistently ranks among the top three countries in Shoaib Akhtar's Instagram audience, a remarkable fact given the intense Pakistan–India cricket rivalry. It reflects how his record-breaking pace bowling earned him a legendary status that cricket fans across the subcontinent respect regardless of nationality.
Stats (followers, engagement, audience demographics, growth) are pulled live from the CreatorDB API covering YouTube, Instagram and TikTok. Bio and FAQ content is AI-assisted; news items are sourced from cited public press at generation time. Read the full methodology →
If you'd like to update, correct, or remove this profile, get in touch and we'll handle it within 5 business days. We don't publish private data — every stat shown comes from your public platform profiles.
@imshoaibakhtar · Instagram
+0 new followers
Preparing fresh data…
This usually takes 15–25 seconds.