Rumman Raees: “In world cricket, I don’t think anyone is like Mohammad Asif”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Rumman Raees admitted that he has never seen anyone quite like former Pakistan fast bowler Mohammad Asif, who used to rip through opposition batsmen with his swing and deadly accurate bowling.
Asif was a nightmare to deal with both at home and abroad and looked to be on the path to achieving great things.
Players like South Africa batsman Hashim Amla, iconic England batter Kevin Pietersen and former India cricketer Robin Uthappa all conceded that they have never faced anyone tougher than Asif.
Raees believes this stems from the fact that there has been no other bowler who is remotely similar to the 40-year-old from Sheikhupura.
“In world cricket, I don’t think anyone is like Mohammad Asif,” he said on Daniyal Sheikh’s podcast as quoted by Cricwick.
Pakistan recently defeated Sri Lanka 2-0 in a Test series before going on to whitewash Afghanistan 3-0 in an ODI series.
They were then involved in the Asia Cup, where they kicked off their campaign with a 238-run win over Nepal before having to share one point apiece with India after their match was washed out.
Having made it through to the Super Fours, the men in green continued their run of good form as they secured a convincing seven-wicket win over Bangladesh in Lahore.
However, they suffered their first loss after this as India thrashed them by 228 runs.
Pakistan had the opportunity to qualify for the Asia Cup final when they took on Sri Lanka on September 14 in Colombo, but they succumbed to a two-wicket defeat via the Duckworth–Lewis–Stern method (DLS) method.
Pakistan Squad for 2023 Asia Cup: Babar Azam (capt), Shadab Khan, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Fakhar Zaman, Abdullah Shafique, Imam-ul-Haq, Saud Shakeel, Salman Ali Agha, Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Nawaz, Usama Mir, Haris Rauf, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Mohammad Haris (wk), Faheem Ashraf, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Shahnawaz Dahani, Zaman Khan.
Travelling reserve: Tayyab Tahir