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Pakistan: Pakistan 37-year-old cricketer Asad Shafiq has announced his retirement from all forms of cricket. The Test batter signed off on a high after leading Karachi Whites to the National T20 Championship title on Sunday. Not long ago, chief selector Wahab Riaz had announced that Shafiq will be one of the consultant members in the selection committee.
However, the latter was featuring in the National T20 Cup then leading the Karachi Whites who eventually won the title. Asad Shafiq, who last played for Pakistan in 2020, continued to play domestic cricket over the last 3 years.
Shafiq announced his decision to retire from all forms of the sport in the press conference after leading his team to the title saying that the passion and excitement is not the same to take the field. He also added that his fitness levels also don’t match to make a comeback to international cricket now. However, the Karachi cricketers decided that it was the right time to move away from professional cricket.
In a statement, Shafiq said, “I am not feeling the same excitement and passion playing cricket and neither do I have the same fitness levels required for international cricket. Which is why I have decided to say goodbye to all cricket.” Shafiq also said that he has signed a contract with the PCB and will now become a national selector.
Speaking about his new role, he said, “I have got the contract from the board and I am looking at it and hopefully it will be processed soon”. Asad Shafiq confirmed on Sunday that he is all set to become a selector in the Wahab Riaz-led senior selection committee of the Pakistan cricket team.For the unversed, Asad Shafiq was a crucial part of Pakistan’s Test set up until 2020 before he was dropped. He formed the core of Pakistan’s middle-order playing a massive 77 Test matches amassing 4660 runs at an average of 38.2 with 12 tons and 27 fifties to his name.
Alongside stalwarts like Azhar Ali, Younis Khan, and Misbah ul Haq, Shafiq formed a formidable middle order that steered Pakistan through many challenges, including the turbulent times following the 2010 spot-fixing scandal. He also featured in 60 ODIs and 10 T20Is scoring 1336 and 192 runs respectively. Unfortuntely, he couldn’t score a ton in white-ball cricket but was always known for his excellent skills in red-ball format. It was no surprise that Azhar Ali penned a heartwarming note for his former teammate after the National T20 Championship final.
