Asif Ali Bids Farewell to International Cricket at 33

Lahore, Sep 2 (PTI) – In a significant development for Pakistan cricket, Asif Ali, a stalwart of the middle order in white-ball formats, has announced his retirement from international cricket on Tuesday.

The 33-year-old cricketer from Faisalabad has been a part of two T20I World Cup editions in 2021 and 2022. He also represented Pakistan in the Men's ODI World Cup in England in 2019. Ali described wearing the national team's jersey as the "proudest chapter" of his professional career.

Despite stepping away from international play, Asif has made it clear that he will continue to thrive in domestic and franchise league cricket worldwide.

"Today, I announce my retirement from international cricket. Wearing the Pakistan jersey has been the greatest honour of my life, and serving my country on the cricket field has been my proudest chapter," Asif shared through a social media post.

Throughout his career, the right-handed batsman played 21 ODIs and 58 T20Is, accumulating 959 runs, with three half-centuries to his name.

His contributions included appearances in tournaments like the ODI Asia Cup in 2018, the T20I Asia Cup in 2022, and the 2023 Hangzhou Asian Games, which was a T20I format event.

Asif's most celebrated innings was against Afghanistan during the 2021 T20 World Cup, where Pakistan needed 24 runs in two overs. He scored an electrifying 25 off just seven balls, dispatching four sixes off the bowling of pacer Karim Janat in the 19th over, securing a crucial Super 12 victory for Pakistan.