Just days before the start of the Asia Cup 2025, a hard-hitting Pakistani batsman announced his retirement from international cricket. Asif Ali, a middle-order batsman who was part of the Pakistani team in the 2022 Asia Cup, made the decision. After being out of the Pakistani team for the past two years, Ali cited dwindling hopes of a comeback as the reason for his retirement. The batsman made his debut in 2018 and played a total of 79 matches for Pakistan in both ODI and T20 formats.
Ali, 33, announced his retirement from international cricket on Monday, September 1st, via a post on his social media account. In his statement, Ali wrote, “Today, I announce my retirement from international cricket. Wearing the Pakistan jersey has been the greatest honor of my life, and serving my country on the cricket field has been the most proud moment for me.” Ali also thanked his teammates, coaching staff, and fans.
Ali debuted for Pakistan in T20 cricket in 2018, followed by his ODI debut the same year. Ali was recognized as a power hitter, and he consistently received opportunities in the Pakistani team with this expectation. He was given chances in the middle order and as a finisher, especially in T20 cricket, but he was never able to fulfill his role properly. Except for a few exceptional innings, he disappointed the team on most occasions.
Ali was not included in the Asia Cup this time. However, he was part of the Pakistani team in the T20 Asia Cup in 2022, played in the UAE. Before that tournament, he claimed to hit 150 sixes during practice every day. Expectations were high for him in the tournament, but apart from a match-winning performance against Afghanistan, he didn’t do much. In two matches against India, he scored 25 runs in 15 balls. Furthermore, in the T20 World Cup 2022, he was dismissed for just 2 runs against Team India.
Having debuted for the Pakistani team in 2018, Asif Ali had been out of the team for the last 2 years. He played his last T20 match in October 2023 and his last ODI match in April 2022. Overall, Asif scored 577 runs in 58 T20 matches for Pakistan with an average of 15 and a strike rate of 133. In 21 ODIs, he could only score 382 runs with an average of 25.