So it’s goodbye to Mohammad Asif. He’ll be 33 when his latest ban expires, and more than likely he’ll be deemed too rusty/old/controversial to be picked for Pakistan again. What a bowler to lose: 106 wickets at 24.36 in 23 Tests (along with two positive tests for steroids and a bit of spot-fixing between times). Look up ‘wobble’ in future cricket lexicons and you might find that it is defined as ‘Mohammad Asif’. Wobble is one of the most effective qualities a fast bowler can have; the ball to nip one way or the other, just enough, as opposed to booming swing which defeats batsman but doesn’t always take wickets. Wobble might also describe how a batsman felt when they faced Asif. Asif had no need for speed for he had wobble. And he achieved it with the sort of control of the ball I rarely manage when flipping a pancake. Almost invariably, it landed where and how he wanted. High skill delivered by a supple, hypnotic action. The lasting memory of the 2010 summer will be the dark clouds which literally and figuratively hung above Lord’s on the final day of another infamous England-Pakistan series. But I shall also remember watching Asif and Amir produce some of the most skilful swing bowling I have seen. They were the hottest swing pair in town, bowling in the best swing conditions in the world. As one punter said on the King Cricket website, “I want to watch Asif and Amir, **** your morals.” Of course, they had to be punished. It’s all pointless otherwise. But I can empathise with the sentiment. The game is poorer for the loss of these two outstanding bowlers. Amir may return. For the elegant Asif, it is surely one ban too many. TWC Blogs
Great article and I totally agree. A loss to cricket but he fully deserves it. 5 years ban and 5 years suspended still seems too lenient for someone who has already been banned twice for drugs. Others though got life bans and while this was for spot fixing I highly doubt this was his first and only time.
I fully agree with the sentiment, there's nothing quite like watching Asif bowl in a test match. Especially when the conditions are on his side. Forget Pakistan, the sport of cricket would have been much richer if Aamer and Asif had been shredding batting line-ups for the next 5 years. But an example needs to be made and unfortunately it was these two potential greats who lacked the strength of character to just say 'NO'
Inshallah his ban will be reduced and he will back in a green shirt soon. I always remember him in my prayers.
^^ I doubt he will appeal for a reduction. More importantly, he might not even bother staying fit for 5 years in the hope of making a comeback. (Of course this doesn't say it's him, but I'm pretty sure it's Asif).
Oh well. My first glimpse as I entered the stands at Headingley was this lanky almost pedestrian chap running in with the hair flopping delivering the ball with the batter prodding at it. Such a waste.
