Shoaib Akhtar's achievement in bowling the firstrecorded 100mph delivery will not be officially ratified, an International Cricket Council (ICC) spokesman has announced.

Shoaib, 26, nicknamed the "Rawalpindi Express", was clocked at 161 kph (100.04 mph) in the third and final one-day international against New Zealand in Lahore on Saturday.

However, bowling speeds have never formed part of cricket's official statistics, where runs, wickets and catches make up the bulk of the record books.

"We have never kept any official records about bowling speeds," ICC spokesman David Clarke told AFP on Monday. "None whatsoever. It's not an officially-recognised record."

Clarke said there were no forthcoming plans to create an official bowling speed table.

"Not at this stage. But the ICC will be looking at various different aspects of the game during the next few months."

The timing of Shoaib's delivery was clocked by a speed gun belonging to a sponsor at Lahore's Gaddafi Stadium, because the speed gun belonging to the host broadcaster was out of order.

But it is no surprise to anyone in world cricket that Shoaib, whose career has also been dogged by accusations of throwing, should be claiming the record, given the number of times he has been recorded bowling deliveries in the 95 mph-plus range.

His major rival for the title of world's fastest bowler is Brett Lee, who was earlier this year timed at 99.8 mph in Cape Town.

For more than 20 years, it was generally accepted that Jeff Thomson had bowled the quickest delivery of all time - 99.8 mph at Perth in 1975-76.

However, that ball was sent down during a special net session, as there was no equipment that could accurately measure delivery speeds in match conditions.

© Wisden CricInfo Ltd