Asif Ali (cricketer)
Pakistani cricketer
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Asif Ali (born 1 October 1991) is a Pakistani former cricketer who played for the Pakistan national cricket team. In first-class cricket, he represented Northern, and also played for the Lahore Qalandars in the Pakistan Super League.[3]
Faisalabad, Punjab, Pakistan
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Born | 1 October 1991 Faisalabad, Punjab, Pakistan | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nickname | Laparu[1] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 5 ft 7 in (170 cm)[2] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Batting | Right-handed | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bowling | Right-arm off break | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Role | Middle-order batter | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| International information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| National side |
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| ODI debut (cap 217) | 13 July 2018 v Zimbabwe | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Last ODI | 2 April 2022 v Australia | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| T20I debut (cap 76) | 1 April 2018 v West Indies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Last T20I | 7 October 2023 v Bangladesh | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Domestic team information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2010/11–2017/18 | Faisalabad | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2013 | United Bank Limited | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2014 | Punjab | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2016–2023 | Islamabad United (squad no. 13) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2016/17–2018/19 | Rawalpindi | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2016/17–2018/19 | Sui Northern Gas | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2018–2019 | Cape Town Blitz | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2018/19 | Islamabad | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2018/19 | Sindh | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2019/20–2021/22 | Northern | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2019/20 | Dhaka Platoon | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2020 | Jamaica Tallawahs | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2021 | St Kitts & Nevis Patriots | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2022/23 | Hobart Hurricanes | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2024 | Peshawar Zalmi | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2025 | Lahore Qalandars | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Career statistics | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Source: ESPNCricinfo, 25 April 2025 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
He was among thirty-three players awarded a central contract for the 2018–19 season by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).[4][5]
Ali announced his retirement from international cricket on 1 September 2025.[6][7][8]
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.[9]
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.[9]
He was the leading run-scorer for Faisalabad in the 2017–18 Quaid-e-Azam Trophy, with 369 runs in six matches.[10] He also played in the 2017 Everest Premier league for Pokhara Rhinos.[11]
In April 2018, he was named in Punjab's squad for the 2018 Pakistan Cup.[12][13] He scored the most runs for Punjab during the tournament, with 328 runs in four matches.[14]
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.[15] In October 2018, he was named in Cape Town Blitz's squad for the first edition of the Mzansi Super League T20 tournament.[16][17]
In March 2019, he was named in Sindh's squad for the 2019 Pakistan Cup.[18][19] In September 2019, he was named in the squad for the Cape Town Blitz team for the 2019 Mzansi Super League tournament.[20]
In September 2019, he was named in Northern's squad for the 2019–20 Quaid-e-Azam Trophy tournament.[21][22] In November 2019, he was selected to play for the Dhaka Platoon in the 2019–20 Bangladesh Premier League.[23]
In July 2020, he was named in the Jamaica Tallawahs squad for the 2020 Caribbean Premier League.[24][25] In October 2020, he was drafted by the Jaffna Stallions for the inaugural edition of the Lanka Premier League.[26] In January 2021, he was named in Northern's squad for the 2020–21 Pakistan Cup.[27][28]
He was picked by St Kitts & Nevis Patriots for CPL 2021.[29][30] In December 2021, he was signed by Islamabad United following the players' draft for the 2022 Pakistan Super League.[31] In July 2022, he was signed by the Colombo Stars for the third edition of the Lanka Premier League.[32]
In August 2022, he was signed by the Hobart Hurricanes for BBL 12.[33]
International career
In Mar 2018, he was named in Pakistan's Twenty20 International (T20I) squad for their series against the West Indies.[34][35] He made his T20I debut for Pakistan against the West Indies on 1 April 2018.[36] He made his ODI debut for Pakistan against Zimbabwe on 13 July 2018.[37]
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.[38][39] Ali struggled to make an impact in the first three years of his international career, and was often sidelined from the team.[40][41]
2021 ICC T20 World Cup
In September 2021, he was named in Pakistan's squad for the 2021 ICC Men's T20 World Cup.[42] His selection was criticized by many people including ex-cricketers[43][44][45] but he proved his selection right by scoring crucial runs against New Zealand and Afghanistan.[46][47][48][49] He won the man of the match award for scoring unbeaten 25 off 7 balls against Afghanistan.[50][51]
Asif Ali won the Player of the Month award in November 2021 for his match-winning performances for Pakistan during the T20 World Cup.[52][53]
Asia Cup 2022
He was named in the Pakistan's squad for the Asia Cup 2022.[54] 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.[55]