Pakistan with and without Shoaib in Tests since Nov 29, 1997

	Tests	Won/ lost	Wickets	Average	Strike rate
With Shoaib	46	20/ 16	702	33.63	62.1
Without Shoaib	69	20/ 28	1038	34.70	67.4

However, the number of Tests he missed meant he could never form a meaningful combination with another fast bowler. Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis played 61 Tests together, which is more than the total number of matches Shoaib played. The most Tests another fast bowler played with him was 20, by Mohammad Sami (though it's arguable what kind of support Shoaib got from him). Waqar played 19, while Abdul Razzaq, who was hardly a strike bowler, played 17.

The two other fast bowlers with whom Shoaib could have formed a lethal on-field combination are Umar Gul and Mohammad Asif, but Asif ended up playing only four Tests with Shoaib, and Gul managed just three.