Mohammad Asif

Mohammad Asif (Punjabi:, born 20 December 1982) is a Pakistani former cricketer who played for the Pakistani national cricket team between 2005 and 2010.

A native of Sheikhupura, Asif played first-class cricket for Khan Research Labs, the National Bank, Quetta, Sheikhupura, Sialkot and Leicestershire.

He made his Test match debut for the Pakistan cricket team against Australia in January 2005.

After impressing in domestic Pakistani cricket, Asif was fast tracked into the Pakistan test squad and made his first appearance against Australia in January 2005.

He bowled 18 overs without taking a wicket and Australia won by 9 wickets.

In November 2005, Leicestershire announced the signing of Asif for the 2006 season after he had played a game for their second XI in 2004.

In 2006, Asif tested positive for anabolic steroid Nandrolone, leading to the imposition of a ban which was later overturned on appeal.

He was later withdrawn from Pakistan's World Cup squad with an unrelated injury.

Further cricket controversy followed when he was detained in Dubai suspected of having drugs on his person and was then found to have tested positive for a banned substance during the Indian Premier League.

Asif was subsequently dropped from the side but he returned a year later in January 2006 for the home tour against India.

In the second Test, Asif bowled 34 overs and took the wicket of Indian cricketer Yuvraj Singh.

It was the third Test in Karachi, however, where Asif would make headlines.

After a poor batting display by Pakistan, Asif took 4 for 78 in the first innings, including the wickets of V. V. S. Laxman, Rahul Dravid and, once again, Yuvraj Singh, to help Pakistan take a six-run lead.

Asif returned in the second innings with three clean bowled wickets of Virender Sehwag, Laxman, and Sachin Tendulkar to lead Pakistan to victory.

His series against the Indians was blighted by a fine imposed by match referee Chris Broad for over-appealing and premature celebration of a wicket.

The ODI series that followed this Pakistan lost 4–1 to India.

Public and media reports in Pakistan surfaced that Asif had married Pakistani actress and model Veena Malik, on 28 May 2009, in a private ceremony in London.

However it was denied later that the marriage had taken place.

In 2010, Asif was ranked the second leading Test bowler, behind Dale Steyn.

In August 2010 he was accused by the News of the World of deliberately bowling no-balls in return for payment from a betting syndicate.

In April 2010, Veena Malik filed a complaint against Asif claiming that he threatened to harm her if she did not stop pursuing her demand that he return the loan of around Rs 14 million he had taken from her.

On 2 March 2010, Asif announced his engagement to Sania Hilal in Lahore.

The couple wed on 1 October 2010, and Asif was reported as stating that he hoped marriage would change his life in a positive way.

Attendees included Pakistan Test cricket captain Misbah-ul-Haq and Younis Khan

On 5 February 2011 a 3-man tribunal, appointed by the International Cricket Council (ICC) gave the verdict that he was to be banned for 7 years, with 2 of those suspended if no further offences were committed.

In November 2011, Asif was convicted, along with Salman Butt and Mohammad Amir, of conspiracy charges relating to spot-fixing.

On 3 November 2011, Asif was given a one-year prison sentence for his role in the scandal.

Asif followed up his match-winning efforts against India in Pakistan's next tour in Sri Lanka, where he took a career-best 11 for 70 in the 2nd Test, in another come-from-behind victory.

On 19 August 2015, the ICC suspended its previous orders and allowed Asif to play all formats of the game, effective as of 2 September 2015.

He played in his first match after the ban when he represented Water and Power Development Authority in the third round of the 2016–17 Quaid-e-Azam Trophy in October 2016.

Asif was born in the small farming village of Machikay near Sheikhupura, in Pakistan's central Punjab province, into a Gujjar family.

His father Hasan Deen is a farmer who was against Asif's decision to play professional cricket, preferring instead that his four sons get involved in the family business of agriculture and animal breeding.

In December 2018, Asif, his wife and their two children were injured in a road accident in Lahore.

A right hand medium fast bowler with a smooth action and short run up.

Asif was able to swing the ball both ways without much change in his bowling action.

He also would be able to create sharp seam movement which he was able to do by alternation off fingers whilst releasing the ball.

He was able to confuse batsmen as to which way the ball would move and would use his skills to a devastating effect.

He was regarded by several batsman as one of the toughest fast bowler ever faced.

Great batsmen such as: AB de Villiers, Kevin Pietersen and Hashim Amla have regarded him amongst their toughest bowlers ever faced.

England pace bowler James Anderson complimented Asif as key to his development of his seam movement, saying he watched Asif bowl his "Wobble Seam" method.