Azhar Mahmood: “People expect a lot from Asif Ali and Asif Ali himself wants to do well, and we expect a lot of things from him but he didn’t produce those things”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Azhar Mahmood, the former Pakistan bowling coach, said people have very high expectations for power-hitter Asif Ali.
Asif used to be Pakistan’s first-choice big-hitter and finisher in limited overs cricket, but after failing to score runs consistently, he has fallen out of favour with the selectors.
This has resulted in him not play for the men in green since October 2022.
Mahmood added that he expected big things from the 31-year-old while coaching Islamabad United in the 2023 Pakistan Super League (PSL). But, he fell short of meeting those expectations.
The Faisalabad-born batsman scored 114 runs in nine matches during PSL 8 at an average of 19 and a strike-rate of 148.05.
“People expect a lot from Asif Ali and Asif Ali himself wants to do well, and we expect a lot of things from him but he didn’t produce those things,” Mahmood said in a video posted by respected journalist Saj Sadiq on Twitter.
Asif wasn’t picked for Pakistan’s ongoing two-Test series against Sri Lanka, where the men in green hold a 1-0 lead after securing a four-wicket win in the first Test in Galle.
The second Test will begin on July 24 in Colombo.
Pakistan Squad for Sri Lanka Test Series:Â Babar Azam (c), Mohammad Rizwan (vc & wk), Aamer Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Muhammad Huraira, Mohammad Nawaz, Naseem Shah, Noman Ali, Salman Ali Agha, Sarfaraz Ahmed (wk), Saud Shakeel, Shaheen Shah Afridi and Shan Masood