Pakistan batter Asad Shafiq retires from all forms of cricket

Following a stellar Test career, the 37-year-old declared his retirement from all forms of cricket.

After guiding Karachi Whites to the National T20 Championship triumph, Asad Shafiq has said goodbye to cricket. Shafiq confirmed in a news conference held after the game that he was losing interest in playing cricket.

Pakistan batter Asad Shafiq retires from all forms of cricket

“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,” he declared.

For his nation, Asad played in 77 Test matches, 60 ODIs, and 10 T20 matches. He was very important for Pakistan in the longest format of the game, scoring 4660 runs, 12 hundred, and so on.

The hitter played domestic cricket with the hopes of playing again for Pakistan after his final outing for the team against England in Southampton in 2020.

“After being dropped in 2020 I kept on playing domestic cricket for three years in the hope of getting another crack at the Pakistan team.

“But before the start of this season I had decided this would be my last season because I felt that closing in on 38 years of age this was time to retire instead of people telling me to step down,” Shafiq stated.

Shafiq still retains the record for most centuries scored at No. 6 in Tests. He was a member of the Misbah-ul-Haq team that helped Pakistan get to the top of the MRF Tyres ICC Men's Test Team Rankings.

Shafiq, Misbah, Younis Khan, and Azhar Ali established a middle order that served as the cornerstone of Pakistan's prosperity for the most part, especially during their years in exile in the United Arab Emirates. With 4660 runs at an average of 38.19 by the conclusion of his career, he was close to the mid-40s throughout his finest periods.

That resulted in part from his spending most of his Test matches at No. 6, where he served as a link between the engine room and an inherently unstable lower order. Known for having the most hundreds in Test history from that position, he broke Sir Garry Sobers' record during one of his most famous centuries, a 137 at the Gabba that almost saw Pakistan win in a massive 490-run chase.

That century arrived shortly after he hit 109 at The Oval, which Pakistan won to draw the series and move up to the top of the Test rankings. Following the 2010 spot-fixing controversy, Shafiq made his debut for his country in England. He played his maiden ODIs during that trip and his first Test in November of the same year when Misbah assumed the captaincy. "It was quite difficult after the 2010 incident and we had to win the trust of the public back," he stated.

While Shafiq awaits the completion of his contract, he may look forward to serving as a selector on Wahab Riaz's revamp committee in the future.

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