Pakistan seamer Mohammad Asif, who was banned for seven years following the spot-fixing scandal during the Lord’s Test against England in 2010 alongside Mohammed Amir and Salman Butt, has been hitting headlines following a string of impressive performances in Pakistan’s domestic tournaments. Now, Asif has been left disappointed after he was not named in the Pakistan squad for the recently concluded tour of South Africa.
Asif had picked up 18 wickets in just four games at an economy rate of 2.75 in the Quaid-e-Azam trophy. Earlier in the Departmental One Day Cup, Asif scalped three wickets in five matches at an economy of 4.72.
Now, Asif has accused the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) of double standards as the board has given the opportunity to one player, referring to Mohammad Amir without naming him, and added that everyone deserves the same opportunity.
“I performed very well in the previous domestic season, picking up some 45 wickets in seven matches. However, no one called me up and I am getting completely ignored, which is unjust and should not happen,” Asif was quoted as saying by Business Recorder.
“If you are giving opportunities to one person [Mohammad Amir], others should be given the same opportunity as well. It is double standards from the Pakistan Cricket Board [PCB] and cricket selectors as well,” the veteran bowler added.
Recently, Pakistan had suffered defeats in all of Test, ODI and T20I series against South Africa. Pakistan were whitewashed in the three-match Test series 3-0 while losing the five-match ODI series 3-2. The three-match T20I series ended 2-1 in favour of South Africa.
Pakistan will now face England in five ODIs and one T20I in May as a final preparatory stop before the 2019 Cricket World in England and May.