Asif Ali
Personal information
Born (1991-10-01) 1 October 1991 (age 32)
Faisalabad, Punjab, Pakistan
NicknameLaparu[1]
Height5 ft 7 in (170 cm)[2]
BattingRight-handed
BowlingRight-arm off break
RoleMiddle-order batter
International information
National side
ODI debut (cap 217)13 July 2018 v Zimbabwe
Last ODI2 April 2022 v Australia
T20I debut (cap 76)1 April 2018 v West Indies
Last T20I23 October 2022 v India
Domestic team information
YearsTeam
2010/11–2017/18Faisalabad
2013United Bank Limited
2014Punjab
2016–2023Islamabad United (squad no. 13)
2016/17–2018/19Rawalpindi
2016/17–2018/19Sui Northern Gas
2018–2019Cape Town Blitz
2018/19Islamabad
2018/19Sindh
2019/20–2021/22Northern
2019/20Dhaka Platoon
2020Jamaica Tallawahs
2021St Kitts & Nevis Patriots
2022/23Hobart Hurricanes
2024Peshawar Zalmi
Career statistics
Competition ODI T20I LA T20
Matches 21 55 83 258
Runs scored 382 544 2,089 4,220
Batting average 25.46 15.11 29.84 22.56
100s/50s 0/3 0/0 4/11 1/14
Top score 52 41* 138 100
Balls bowled 5 – 70 42
Wickets 0 – 3 4
Bowling average – – 30.66 13.25
5 wickets in innings 0 – 0 0
10 wickets in match 0 – 0 0
Best bowling – – 2/10 2/27
Catches/stumpings 6/– 18/– 33/– 103/–
Source: ESPNCricinfo, 15 January 2023

Asif Ali (Punjabi:آصف علی; born 1 October 1991) is a Pakistani cricketer playing for the Pakistan national cricket team. In first-class cricket, Asif represents Northern, and he plays for Peshawar Zalmi in the Pakistan Super League.[3]

He is one of thirty-three players to be awarded a central contract for the 2018–19 season by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).[4][5]

Early life

Asif was born on 1 October 1991, in Faisalabad, Pakistan

Before going into professional cricket, he used to work as a labourer in an iron foundry.[6]

Domestic and T20 franchise career

Misbah-ul-Haq has played an instrumental role in his development as a cricketer and initially picked him as a power-hitter in the 2011 Super 8 Twenty20 Cup when he was a captain of the Faisalabad cricket team.[6]

He was the leading run-scorer for Faisalabad in the 2017–18 Quaid-e-Azam Trophy, with 369 runs in six matches.[7] He also played in the 2017 Everest Premier league for Pokhara Rhinos.[8]

In April 2018, he was named in Punjab's squad for the 2018 Pakistan Cup.[9][10] He scored the most runs for Punjab during the tournament, with 328 runs in four matches.[11]

On 3 June 2018, he was selected to play for the Edmonton Royals in the players' draft for the inaugural edition of the Global T20 Canada tournament.[12][13] In October 2018, he was named in Cape Town Blitz's squad for the first edition of the Mzansi Super League T20 tournament.[14][15]

In March 2019, he was named in Sindh's squad for the 2019 Pakistan Cup.[16][17] In September 2019, he was named in the squad for the Cape Town Blitz team for the 2019 Mzansi Super League tournament.[18]

In September 2019, he was named in Northern's squad for the 2019–20 Quaid-e-Azam Trophy tournament.[19][20] In November 2019, he was selected to play for the Dhaka Platoon in the 2019–20 Bangladesh Premier League.[21]

In July 2020, he was named in the Jamaica Tallawahs squad for the 2020 Caribbean Premier League.[22][23] In October 2020, he was drafted by the Jaffna Stallions for the inaugural edition of the Lanka Premier League.[24] In January 2021, he was named in Northern's squad for the 2020–21 Pakistan Cup.[25][26]

He was picked by St Kitts & Nevis Patriots for CPL 2021.[27][28] In December 2021, he was signed by Islamabad United following the players' draft for the 2022 Pakistan Super League.[29] In July 2022, he was signed by the Colombo Stars for the third edition of the Lanka Premier League.[30]

In August 2022, he was signed by the Hobart Hurricanes for BBL 12.[31]

International career

In Mar 2018, he was named in Pakistan's Twenty20 International (T20I) squad for their series against the West Indies.[32][33] He made his T20I debut for Pakistan against the West Indies on 1 April 2018.[34] He made his ODI debut for Pakistan against Zimbabwe on 13 July 2018.[35]

In May 2019, he was named in Pakistan's squad for the 2019 Cricket World Cup, after the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) named their final fifteen-man squad for the tournament.[36][37] Ali struggled to make an impact in the first three years of his international career, and was often sidelined from the team.[38][39]

2021 ICC T20 World Cup

In September 2021, he was named in Pakistan's squad for the 2021 ICC Men's T20 World Cup.[40] His selection was criticized by many people including ex-cricketers[41][42][43] but he proved his selection right by scoring crucial runs against New Zealand and Afghanistan.[44][45][46][47] He won the man of the match award for scoring unbeaten 25 off 7 balls against Afghanistan.[48][49]

Asif Ali won the Player of the Month award in November 2021 for his match-winning performances for Pakistan during the T20 World Cup.[50][51]

Asia Cup 2022

He was named in the Pakistan's squad for the Asia Cup 2022.[52] On September 8, 2022, he was fined 25% of match fees for breaching Level 1 of the ICC Code of Conduct during the match against Afghanistan after he got involved in a heated exchange with Afghanistan's bowler Fareed Ahmad.[53]

References

  1. ^ "Keep calm and celebrate like a #Prince – The story behind Islamabad United nicknames". www.geo.tv. Retrieved 3 April 2023.
  2. ^ "Asif Ali's profile on CREX".
  3. ^ "Asif Ali". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 13 February 2016.
  4. ^ "PCB Central Contracts 2018–19". Pakistan Cricket Board. Retrieved 6 August 2018.
  5. ^ "New central contracts guarantee earnings boost for Pakistan players". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 6 August 2018.
  6. ^ a b "Iron man Asif Ali hits his way to stardom". DAWN.COM. 30 October 2021.
  7. ^ "Quaid-e-Azam Trophy, 2017/18: Faisalabad Batting and bowling averages". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 8 April 2018.
  8. ^ "Asif Ali profile and biography, stats, records, averages, photos and videos". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 30 October 2021.
  9. ^ "Pakistan Cup one-day tournament to begin in Faisalabad next week". Geo TV. Retrieved 21 April 2018.
  10. ^ "Pakistan Cup Cricket from 25th". The News International. Retrieved 21 April 2018.
  11. ^ "Pakistan Cup 2018, Punjab: Batting and bowling averages". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 4 May 2018.
  12. ^ "Global T20 Canada: Complete Squads". SportsKeeda. Retrieved 4 June 2018.
  13. ^ "Global T20 Canada League – Full Squads announced". CricTracker. Retrieved 4 June 2018.
  14. ^ "Mzansi Super League - full squad lists". Sport24. Retrieved 17 October 2018.
  15. ^ "Mzansi Super League Player Draft: The story so far". Independent Online. Retrieved 17 October 2018.
  16. ^ "Federal Areas aim to complete hat-trick of Pakistan Cup titles". Pakistan Cricket Board. Retrieved 25 March 2019.
  17. ^ "Pakistan Cup one-day cricket from April 2". The International News. Retrieved 25 March 2019.
  18. ^ "MSL 2.0 announces its T20 squads". Cricket South Africa. Archived from the original on 4 September 2019. Retrieved 4 September 2019.
  19. ^ "PCB announces squads for 2019-20 domestic season". Pakistan Cricket Board. Retrieved 4 September 2019.
  20. ^ "Sarfaraz Ahmed and Babar Azam to take charge of Pakistan domestic sides". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 4 September 2019.
  21. ^ "BPL draft: Tamim Iqbal to team up with coach Mohammad Salahuddin for Dhaka". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 18 November 2019.
  22. ^ "Nabi, Lamichhane, Dunk earn big in CPL 2020 draft". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 6 July 2020.
  23. ^ "Teams Selected for Hero CPL 2020". Cricket West Indies. Retrieved 6 July 2020.
  24. ^ "Chris Gayle, Andre Russell and Shahid Afridi among big names taken at LPL draft". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 22 October 2020.
  25. ^ "Pakistan Cup One-Day Tournament promises action-packed cricket". Pakistan Cricket Board. Retrieved 7 January 2021.
  26. ^ "Pakistan Cup One-Day Tournament: Fixtures Schedule, Teams, Player Squads – All you need to Know". Cricket World. Retrieved 7 January 2021.
  27. ^ "Asif joins St Kitts and Nevis Patriots". www.thenews.com.pk. Retrieved 31 October 2021.
  28. ^ "Asif Ali Joins St Kitts & Nevis Patriots for CPL 2021". Archived from the original on 31 October 2021.
  29. ^ "Franchises finalise squad for HBL PSL 2022". Pakistan Cricket Board. Retrieved 12 December 2021.
  30. ^ "LPL 2022 draft: Kandy Falcons sign Hasaranga; Rajapaksa to turn out for Dambulla Giants". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 6 July 2022.
  31. ^ "Hobart Hurricanes pick Shadab, Asif, and Faheem for BBL 12". www.geosuper.tv. Retrieved 11 September 2022.
  32. ^ "Asif Ali, Talat and Shaheen Afridi picked for WI T20Is". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 26 March 2018.
  33. ^ "Afridi, Talat, Ali bring gush of youth to Pakistan". International Cricket Council. Retrieved 28 March 2018.
  34. ^ "1st T20I, West Indies tour of Pakistan at Karachi, Apr 1 2018". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 1 April 2018.
  35. ^ "1st ODI, Pakistan Tour of Zimbabwe at Bulawayo, Jul 13 2018". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 13 July 2018.
  36. ^ "Wahab Riaz, Mohammad Amir, Asif Ali included in Pakistan World Cup squad". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 20 May 2019.
  37. ^ "Mohammad Amir, Wahab Riaz named in Pakistan's World Cup squad". International Cricket Council. Retrieved 20 May 2019.
  38. ^ Khan, Khalid H. (25 April 2021). "ANALYSIS: Brittle Pakistan must resolve Asif Ali enigma before T20 World Cup". DAWN.COM. Retrieved 21 November 2021.
  39. ^ "Can Pakistan get the real Asif Ali to show up more often?". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 21 November 2021.
  40. ^ "Sharjeel Khan dropped from T20 World Cup squad; Asif Ali, Khushdil Shah make 15-man cut". ESPN Cricnfo. Retrieved 6 September 2021.
  41. ^ "'Stop criticising for once. It's annoying and frustrating': 'Angry' Wasim Akram reacts to backlash received by PCB". Hindustan Times. 15 September 2021. Retrieved 1 November 2021.
  42. ^ "Wasim Akram calls for end to criticism of Pakistan's T20 World Cup squad: It's annoying and frustrating". India Today. 15 September 2021. Retrieved 1 November 2021.
  43. ^ "T20 World Cup: Sohaib Maqsood responds to Fahad Mustafa over his criticism of Asif Ali". www.geo.tv. Retrieved 1 November 2021.
  44. ^ "Late cameo from Asif Ali fires Pakistan past New Zealand at T20 World Cup". the Guardian. 26 October 2021. Retrieved 1 November 2021.
  45. ^ "Asif Ali, the new finisher in town". The Indian Express. 30 October 2021. Retrieved 1 November 2021.
  46. ^ "Asif Ali thanks his believers as he comes good in green again". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 1 November 2021.
  47. ^ "'Remember the name 2.0': How Asif Ali took Pakistan home in Dubai". www.aljazeera.com. Retrieved 1 November 2021.
  48. ^ "'Asif you beauty': Celebrities cheer on Asif Ali after his match winning performance against Afghanistan". Images. 30 October 2021. Retrieved 1 November 2021.
  49. ^ "Iron man Asif Ali hits his way to stardom". DAWN.COM. 30 October 2021. Retrieved 1 November 2021.
  50. ^ "ICC Players of the Month for October revealed". International Cricket Council. Retrieved 10 November 2021.
  51. ^ "T20 World Cup: Pakistan's 'Finisher' Asif Ali voted ICC Player of the Month". geo.tv. Retrieved 10 November 2021.
  52. ^ "All the squads for 2022 Asia Cup". www.icc-cricket.com. Retrieved 11 September 2022.
  53. ^ "Asif Ali and Fareed Ahmad punished for breaching ICC Code of Conduct". www.icc-cricket.com. Retrieved 11 September 2022.

External links

Pakistan squad โ€“ 2019 Cricket World Cup
Colombo Strikers โ€“ current squad
Peshawar Zalmi โ€“ current squad
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